#so sqq and yqy are safe.

[thegoldenavenger]

About... 7k of reverse tropes "nursing home" au inspired by the bingliu server as always. Minor warnings for themes of mortality, elder abuse, controlling behavior, cults (???), and uh less than canon typical violence. Mostly it's funny I hope. Not betad and an outline fic.

LBH volunteers at the nursing home in homage to his adoptive mother who was a nurse there. He's seen as a sweet boy, dedicated and hard working. He is 100% the "statistic that caregivers exert undue influence unto their charge in order to be included as a beneficiary in their will is an error. Luo Binghe who gets included in over three digits of wills and inheritance clauses is an outlier adn should not have been counted."

Mostly bc the folks he volunteers for genuinely like him, but also bc after his mom died, only being in some random grandmother's will helped him survive and start going to college so now he games the system by being sweet and maybe a little manipulative.

Shen Qingqiu is an older gentleman who has been in and out of hospitals and is now recovering in the assisted living center (or something idk). Shen Qingqiu is rich and aloof looking, can be extremely acerbic so a lot of the nurses avoid him when they can. His family, if he has any, do not visit.

Luo Binghe has time and holes in his schedule so he starts feeling out how receptive sqq is. His other target is the old palace master, who is also very rich and old, but less acerbic. Lbh has already started on OPM and he's very friendly but he also has like a billion grandkids who lbh low key has to compete with. OPM seems to favor lbh anyway, but lbh doesn't see any harm in befriending someone a little lonelier just in case.

LQG only meets sqq by mistake. Maybe he's looking for somewhere to house one of his relatives, or maybe he's tagging along to visit a friend's relative. Maybe he has to do volunteer hours for a course he's taking. Whatever it is, he and sqq come into contact. Sqq finds out lqg is [doing something badly that sqq has experience in. Like, idk getting a relatively low grade in literature] sqq immediately picks on this bc he is a terrible gremlin who likes being mean. Lqg, not really beholden to etiquette or respect for old people, fires back.

They get in a very, retroactively, embarrassing verbal spar. Sqq is very haughty and clever, teases out what parts lqg is struggling most with, gives backhanded advice, and mostly enjoys winding lqg up.

Lqg, for his part, is never really challenged in this specific way ever. A) He respects the older people actually in his life bc they deserve it (hmm do they haha) so he just like. Nods when they scold him. B) He usually excels at what he does so he doesn't get chastised often. C) when he doesn't excel he's eager for pointers which are given to him bc he is a martial prodigy everyone wants to nurture except for D) when he's underperforming in the soft arts. He isn't stupid, but no one expects him to be good at poetry or reading, so when he struggles with dyslexia or too literal thinking no one really bothers to help him. So this is like amazing for him.

LBH walks in on the tail-end of the fight, is APALLED, and physically escorts lqg off the premises. Literally picks him up and yeets him out the door. (It's a double KO for lqg who wanders off dazedly) LBH has been trying to get sqq to open up for like weeks now, and he didn't know sqq cared so much for that particular topic, which LBH knows a lot about. So LBH tries to engage with sqq that way. Sqq is perhaps a little more receptive but still taciturn and kind of mean about it.

LBH's endless well of patience finally runs dry, he calls sqq a mean old man, and sqq finally laughs at him. Lbh storms off, upset he got upset and ruined his image and chances of getting into sqq's inheritance probably. The staff and other residents are furious at sqq bc NOONE has ever made lbh upset before, how dare he singe their precious cinnamon roll of a white lotus binghe.

Turns out, the meaner lbh gets, the more crotchety old sqq actaully likes him.  He sees right through lbh's sheep act, is pretty wary that lbh is cozy-ing up to him bc he's about to die and his money and estate might as well go somewhere, and also hates that lbh just lies down and lets anyone walk all over him to seem mild and tender. He's a human person, not a chicken nugget, sqq thinks he should grow a spine and take what he wants and also stop hanging out with literal Cult Leader OPM.

Lqg mulls over sqq's advice, such as it is, applies it, and does a little better then expected. Everyone is shocked and congratulates him (as if the miniscule amount he's improved deserves that) and then tells him to relax and not over exert himself in areas he's not suited towards / doesn't need in life. He is increasingly upset with the people he has around him and goes back to the assisted living center, figures out that they really dont let just anyone walk in and starts a commotion at the front desk.

He can't even say he's there to visit sqq bc he doesn't know his name and saying he wants to visit "the shameless, underhanded, mean old man in green" was probably not the best way to get a visitor's badge...

Lbh is helping sqq take a walk around the center for exercise, sqq bitching the whole time, so they come across lqg making a fuss. Lbh squares up to Remove The Problem, but sqq elbows him out of the way and power walks over to lqg like he wasn't just complaining of a bum hip three seconds ago. He stops half way and switches smoothly into Refined Older Gentleman Strolling mode, with his hands primly behind his back.

LBH is so mad, and also curious so he just watches.

When LQG finally clocks that sqq is approaching he points a very rude finger at him and says "that guy! I'm visiting him!" To the receptionist.

Everyone shuts up, even sqq pauses. He wanted to get in a fight again (lbh has loosened up a tad and will verbally spar with him but he doesn't lose his temper and the sparring is more complicated and maybe a bit more bitter than the uncomplicated win sqq is assured he'd get over lqg) (yes. This man is mad he can't bully lbh more effectively, he's an awful dude ajakskdkdldl) but he wasn't expecting lqg to come back for him. He thought lqg might be here for whatever reason he was here last time.

The receptionist glances at sqq, like... "him? Really?" And sqq sniffs and imperiously waves his hand. "It took you long enough" he says "hurry up and check him in" he orders the receptionist who thinks very hard about calling security before deciding sqq deserves whatever mess he's getting into and hands lqg a visitor badge.

Lbh awkwardly follows them, unwilling to leave them alone when he JUST got sqq to regularly (yell) talk to him. For some reason, sqq's verbal acidity and berating is... well, lbh likes it more than OPM's friendly smiles and incessant little gifts. Like hell he's gonna let some random guy piggy back off his hard work.

Lqg doesn't waste time. He slams his [idk. Test. Essay? Reading report????] Down in front if sqq and crosses his arms.

Sqq stares at it and then at lqg. Lbh sneaks a glance too and makes a face. Sqq says "It was clear at first glance that you were an idiot but I did not know it ran this deep." He reluctantly picks up the paper and flips through, with a face like he's watching a train wreck.

Lqg growls, tense. He hasn't sat down and his hands are white knuckled against the table between them. He leans over sqq almost threatengly, steely gaze watching sqq's every minute change. "Is it hopeless, then?" 

Sqq's expression twitches as he keeps going through, line by line. He recognizes a lot of the mistakes LQG has made, diagnosis him with dyslexia almost immediately, frowns bc he can see the underlying structure lqg is going for but can't execute.

Lbh comes around sqq's side and reads over his shoulder. He's sure sqq is going to throw the papers back in lqg's face, which will serve him right. The paper header catches his attention. Maybe it's the teacher's name, or even lqg's name that he recognizes, but he puts two and two together, realizes lqg would be a Very Beneficial Friend to make, and decides when SQQ throws him out lbh will pick up the pieces. LQG is sure to have richer more influential friends that lbh can use... this will be perfect. He can't stay loitering around this place forever, at some point he has to grow up and be successful and honor his mother's efforts to raise him up...

"It's terrible." Sqq finally says, his voice heavy.

Lqg, who has been told to give up trying by everyone around him and has stubbornly insisted on trying to push through, actually slumps down in his seat. If this random old man thinks it's not worth it, if even he, who doesn't know lqg at all, thinks he's too stupid to improve, maybe he really should stop trying.

LBH cannot help his smug smile. Trust in sqq to tear down anyone's walls, now lbh can just follow after lqg, discarded papers in hand, and offer to go over them with him. It's bad but not hopeless, and anyways, lbh is a great ghostwriter. Lqg looks like a dumb athlete, so even if lbh can't improve his brain he can still improve his grades—

"Whoever tutors you needs to be fired," sqq interrupts lbh's fantasy, and takes a red pen out of his pocket. (He carries it around to correct typos in the books people leave lying around. He also writes scathing reviews on newspapers, magazines, charts that nurses accidentally leave unattended. He's a terror. It is policy to confiscated pens from him.) He starts marking the paper up, saturating it in red.

He actually pinches lqg's ear to pull him closer, pointing at a section to ask for clarification. Lqg halting gives it, sqq expands on it, lqg looks confused and extremely out of his depth.

"Make yourself useful and get my notebook!" Sqq orders lbh, waving his hand in lbh's face.

Lbh grimaces but runs to sqq's bedroom and gets the notebook (he hasn't completely fallen out of his white lotus persona just yet). When he hands it to sqq, sqq pulls lqg in for the Lecture of All Time. Lqg goes from looking wary and confused to determined, all furrowed eyebrows and pursed lips.

Lbh stands around and then wanders off to make snacks, determined to insert himself into this (he wants to be useful so badly! He wants someone to expend that much effort on him!! Isn't sqq supposed to be mean? And yeah, he's yelling at lqg and hitting him with his pen or his notebook to make sure he's paying attention, but sqq is supposed to be making him cry! Not helping him!!!) when he comes back he sets a plate of light finger foods down by sqq's elbow.

Sqq's hand automatically reaches for one and eats it. He pauses his whole lecture to chew. Lbh is unaccountably nervous for sqq's reaction. Sqq's reaction is rather a non reaction. He doesn't comment on lbh's food. But he eats more of it when he continues lecturing lqg and when lqg fails to come up with an answer he points his pen at lbh instead.

Lbh immediately replies, answering perfectly (of course) and sqq nods decisively, awarding him a point. Lbh grins, and lqg hisses "show off" decidedly not under his breath. Lbh responds in kind and the two start in on each other, lqg itching to do something he's confident in and lbh riding high on the one (two!! In sqq's book not taking the moment to spit vitriol is practically praise!) Bit of affirmation sqq had bestowed

Sqq gets tired of them yammering and kicks them both out, telling lqg to stop by again if he's up for getting his brain wrung out like sponge.

Lbh has never been kicked out before so he doesn't really know what to do and ends up wandering after lqg. So what, his plan to comfort lqg kind of... never got off the water, and also the guy keeps shooting wary glances at him, lbh will just annoy him into letting him around lqg's friends and connections. Also, seeing lqg riled up is really making lbh's chest glow. There's no reason to split ways now.

Lqg finds suggestions written in bold all throughout his papers. "Request materials reprinted / displayed in different font" "get a line reader" one note is just a web address. His watch buzzes, and it's time to go to the gym.

Lbh is STILL following him, so lqg tells him to buzz off. Lbh, who isn't blind and can see the gym bag lqg is holding says he is also going to the gym. Lqg points out lbh's lack of gym bag and gym clothes. Lbh says it's lqg's fault for getting him kicked out of his volunteer job early.

Lgq maybe feels a little bad about that so he lets lbh tag along after him. He has to make a stop at his apartment instead of going straight to the gym like he wanted to, in order to throw some spare clothes at lbh, and then they both go to the gym where lqg gets to vent [gestures to all of it]. He's actually feeling pretty damn good! He's got things kind of worked out! Sqq is mean, but he's forcing things into lqg's head that no one has bothered to do before. Lqg isn't like... going to pursue the arts or anything, his family has his future lined up for him already and he isn't particularly interested in the arts. It's just that he wants to prove, if only to himself, that he isn't Just a dumb strong guy.

Meanwhile, lbh's jaw is on the ground. How high can lqg kick? How flexible is he????? How much can he dead lift????????? That's more than lbh weighs!

Lbh is strong but not especially trained. So like, yeah he can throw lqg over his shoulder when the guy is distracted but he's suddenly hyper aware that he might not be able to if lqg was actually fighting him.

He asks for a spar and he learns Very Quickly that, yes, that was indeed an exception... lbh holds his own surprisingly well for someone who isn't trained, lqg is very reluctantly impressed. Lbh ends up flat on his back gripping a Sports Drink(tm) for dear life reconsidering all his plans

So this is how it goes: lqg visits sqq three times a week for the most violent cram school imaginable. Lbh volunteers daily still, spends less time with OPM and more time nagging sqq and following after lqg's gym visits. Sqq is surprisingly content beating knowledge into such a meat head kid, and smug that lbh is dropping more and more of his goody two-shoe act in favor of getting into fights with lqg and debates with sqq.

Lbh enjoys figuring out what snack foods both sqq and lqg will eat; They are both surprisingly picky over food. Sqq likes things that are clean, light, delicate. Lqg eats things that are protein heavy,  clean, and healthy. It's more of a challenge than lbh thought it would be, and a little frustrating when he finds something that one of them likes but the other won't eat.

(Lbh spends an inordinate amount of time on some tanghulu and tea cakes to go along with a high quality tea... sqq practically inhales his portion, praising lbh's tea with more genuine words than he usually does. Lqg makes a face and tells lbh he doesn't eat that much sugar, but they look very nice. The face he makes is sort of resigned)

Lqg keeps improving in his classes. Enough so that one classmates (Mu Qingfang) asks him if he wants to go on a field research trip with him. It's mostly a camping trip, Mqf would deal with all the fiddly bits, but it seems like something lqg would like, mqf says offhandedly.

Lqg mulls it over, brings it up to sqq and lbh the next time he sees them. Sqq is interested in mqf's topic of research and sort of encourages him to go just so sqq can also get in on it. (Lbh watches like 80 year old sqq try and teach lqg how to use the video call function on lqg's drastically unsexy phone)

Lqg goes on the trip.

Sqq and lbh both adjust fairly badly to not seeing lqg like they're used to.  Sqq is surprisingly lonely and takes it out lbh.  Lbh relishes sqq interacting with him more but misses lqg anyways. Without lqg's tutoring lbh goes back to his regular volunteering routine, which means he's back to spoon-feeding OPM

Opm has Not been Happy about lbh spending less time with him. Opm is like, a literal Cult Leader and has been trying to snare lbh for himself this whole time. At first, sqq's abrasiveness seemed perfect, like he'd drive lbh deeper into opm's clutches, but somehow that did not work out. With the addition of lqg helping bridge that gap, lbh seems to be getting further away

Opm pulls some strings, has his dear grand daughter (LPM) start flirting with lbh, and GYX try and take up sqq's time. He also makes a few calls bc he recognizes lqg's family name at least.

It all comes to a head very suddenly.

LQG's family find out he's spending a lot of time is SQQ's care, ducking out on his other responsibilities (he has just rescheduled his time... lqg would never disrespect his family by ditching his other classes and what have yous, but it's all the same to them) that he went on mqf's  camping trip without consulting them, potentially putting himself at risk for injury or sickness or whatever. They're pissed.

Lqg tries arguing that he's literally just getting tutored for his grades and he should be supported for that. He's trying to balance his mind and body, and they should respect that. Instead he gets told that he's undermining their plans for him, being disobedient and willful when he should be grateful he has the chance and privilege to be training for his martial dreams (blah blah blah)

He's thoroughly dressed down and forbidden from visiting the home

Lqg gets increasingly angry and has no idea why he's being punished, because he hasn't dropped any skill he has, and is only trying to improve himself. Honestly, it's starting to feel more and more like committing to the nebulous martial arts / professional athlete career his family is grooming him for is increasingly like stepping into a gilded cage. He enjoys honing his body and competing and it is absolutely killing him that he's getting so torn up about it now.

Literally his only respite is hiding in his baby sister's room and reading stories to her. She loves when he reads to her and she thinks her brother is the smartest person in the whole world.

Unfortunately for sqq and lbh, lqg seems like he drops off the face of the planet. He just stops making video calls with sqq (phone is confiscated) he doesn't show up to his next scheduled cram session (grounded) he just disappears. Sqq idly thinks that he broke him and ran him off.

Lbh is a little suspicious. The man he spars with wouldn't run from anything! He'd definitely tell them to their face when he was done. Probably. Unless lbh scared him off some how? Maybe lqg got tired of lbh stalking him (dropping in on him at the gym, figuring out where his classes were so he can stop by and walk to the assisted living place together, etc) all the time? Maybe... lqg found out lbh was trying to use him to social climb? (Lbh mostly stopped planning to do that the moment lqg laid him flat at the gym but!!! Maybe lqg picked up on something anyway)

Meanwhile, lbh keeps having to fend off LPM, sqq is getting a little annoyed with GYX, and lqg is not sure how he's grounded when he is a whole ass adult... sure he doesn't actually have a job bc he has literally never needed one in his life, but he shouldn't Have to sit quietly and listen to a lecture that boils down to "You're whole life is planned out for you, don't even worry your pretty little head about it."

The OPM is getting anxious bc even without lqg, sqq and lbh seem to be commiserating together. He's in the middle of another Grande Plan to separate the two when they get in a shouting match in the middle of the rec room.  It blew up so quickly no one really got an earful except gyx who was nearby and respectful declines to share, but LBH storms out determined and angry.

OPM is very pleased bc surely that young man will be running to opm now, for comfort and guidance! And opm can guide him straight into his cult's clutches!

Lbh does Not run into OPM's open arms.

He cools off and the next day is back to following behind sqq like a lamb, reflexively making enough finger sandwiches for three and then making sad eyes until sqq eats one more. So OPM plays his cards.

A dapper young man in a suit and a young woman dressed just as nicely show up one day and just, check sqq out of the home.

LBH shows up as the young man is pressing sqq into a wheel chair to cart him off. The woman is holding sqq's coat and is smiling at him, obviously happy to see sqq. Sqq is very Not Happy.

He keeps trying to get out of the chair, keeps telling them to go away and leave him alone, etc etc.

Lbh interrupts them inserting himself in between them and sqq in the chair, creating space. He demands to know who they are and what they're doing, but approaches it cautiously and from the angle that he is oh so concerned with sqq. 

They introduce themselves and Qiu Haitang and Qiu Jianluo (obviously ahsjdk) who are sqq's only living relatives and they've been looking for their grand uncle for months now after he disappeared from his estate. They are oh so glad he's been well taken care of but it's time for him to come home and have the best care money can buy!

Sqq shakes his fist and accuses them of just wanting his inheritance. QHT is offended by the idea, obviously just misses sqq and worried about him, but lbh sees QJL's calculating gaze before qjl waves off sqq's accusation and says sqq must be going stir crazy cooped up in this little home

Lbh can't really do anything to stop sqq from leaving, but he gives his business card to qjl and has to just stand there and watch sqq get dragged away.

OPM edges up to lbh like "look! I am old and in need of attention!" And lbh reluctantly and kind of mechanically goes through his volunteer checklist now that sqq is gone.  Opm takes his chances and tries edging closer to lbh, taking advantage of his obvious poor state.

Meanwhile lqg is starting to chafe under his new restrictions.  He usually likes his routine but it turns out not having any choices really saps the enjoyment out of everything. He takes to bothering his little sister more and more often, growing much closer to her as he isolates himself from the rest of his family. He is just so tired of everyone telling him how great at this one thing in his life he is. Like there's no other choices for him.

It's not like he wants to abandon the life plan his family has laid out for him; he doesn't want to be a scholar, or a scientist, or a poet. He just doesn't like the one dimension everyone has cast on him. He is so, so close to believing he's only good for the one thing and nothing else matters and he really doesn't want to fall into that mindset.

He misses how hard sqq pushed him, and how teasing lbh is. They're both good for him, he thinks. He's known no one else like them in his entire life. Elders are meant to be respected and listened to, and peers, if he had any, were for him to defeat.. he was never encouraged to talk back or think quickly enough to parry one of sqq's spearing little snipes, and has never been allowed to take pride in something as simple as a clever turn of phrase. And no one can keep up with him, so having LBH repeatedly dog his footsteps, improving leaps and bounds just to match him is exhilarating and he misses it.

He thinks about skipping out on leg day to make a visit.

OPM is definitely taking advantage of lbh's sudden unstable headspace. Unfortunately for lbh, he never really processed the grief of his mother passing. He kind of has been low key retraumatising himself by getting old people to love him enough to include him in their wills and then Die on him, but it's totally fine because he has SUCH a tight hold on his emotions that these deaths don't really affect him. Really! There's nothing triggering about being repeatedly left behind. :)

And now he's formed genuine bonds with lqg and sqq against all expectations and they've both left him! And he can't do anything about sqq bc sqq isn't his family or legally bound to him in anyway that he could stake a claim against blood ties, even if he suspects qjl at least of ill intent. And lqg just abandoned both lbh and sqq, so. So.

Opm kind of takes the opportunity to feed into these paranoias and pent up emotions, definitely trying to get lbh to associate opm with some kind of stability. Lbh even goes with opm on a home visit to [Huan Hua Palace analogue] where he's very briefly tempted to join an actual Cult so his problems go away

Luckily someone says something—maybe omp says something a little too reveling, or lpm let's something go that she's not supposed to, or gyx (who genuinely grew to like sqq for some inexplicable reason) gives lbh a stealth hint—and lbh realises that maybe he can't do anything about sqq (yet) but he can definitely track down and wring answers from lqg.

Lbh runs to the gym lqg frequents. Lqg is not there, so lbh tracks him down. (Boy has Stalker in his blood unfortunately)

He finally runs into lqg at a different fancy training gym lbh has to sneak inside of.  He confronts lqg, who seems surprised but not upset to see him. Mostly confused bc lbh is so upset. (His family didn't know? About lbh? So he's not grounded from lbh or even sqq specifically, just the assisted living place.)

Lbh comes off hot, demanding a lot of answers from lqg, who honestly tries to give them, but lbh really isn't in a great headspace and lqg isn't either so it turns into a graceless fight pretty quickly. Lbh is not dressed for a spar, but they tumble across the mats anyways. Lqg doesn't hold back and neither does lbh, who has been learning startlingly fast from lqg so they both end up in terrible condition.

Lqg is finding it kind of cathartic, bc lbh isn't caring about pulling punches or making sure lqg is in top form, and he sure as hell isnt above baiting him with words either.

Lbh is just finding it very nice to actually let lose and not act like a starry eyed little lamb to keep everyone on his good side. Obviously, lqg doesn't like him as much as he thought or he wouldn't have left so it's fine to let everything go

They kind of beat each other into the ground and they're both lying down staring at the ceiling, catching their breath, when lqg finally manages to explain his phone got confiscated and he hasn't been allowed to visit and he bombed that test he was supposed to take, but he did grab a copy of mqf's essay for sqq

And then lbh just bursts into tears

Lqg is frozen, completely unsure of what he said that caused that reaction.

Haltingly, lbh explains that after lqg stopped showing up, sqq's grand niece and nephew took him away probably to get their grubby little hands on his estate or whatever (as if they even care about his extensive historical scroll collections!) and that he's pretty sure he's halfway to joining a Cult even and everything sucks now!!!

Lqg sits up and like. Pats. Awkwardly at lbh's shoulder.

Apparently, since lbh visited Huan Hua Palace he recognized some faces that have been low key following him around and bumping into him all coincidental like. Like. The cult-recrution is very serious and lbh is kind of just realizing it now and freaking out more.

Lqg grabs a first aid kit, tenderly helps clean lbh up, drags him to a store to buy some decent clothes that aren't covered in sweat and blood, and then beings him home.

Can't let him go back to an apartment that's being stalked probably.

He introduces lbh to his family as a novice with potential, and lbh's manners are impeccable so they take a liking to him pretty quickly, even if they are a bit stoic about it. Lqg makes up some acceptable excuse to have lbh have dinner and stay over so they can talk more seriously about everything going on. (Lbh noticed that lqg's dinner is different than the rest of the family's)

Liu mingyan is also there, and adorable, and she likes lbh because he makes her brother frown less.

Anyways, lqg leads lbh to a guest room and then sneaks in from like a side window idk, and starts dissecting lbh's rambling again, this time with focus. He comes to the conclusion that there's two major problems here. One, opm's weird obsession with lbh and that Cult. Lbh can just stop volunteering at the center, but since people already know where he lives and have been low key stalking him that is not the only step they'd have to take.

Second, sqq's nefarious relatives trying to take advantage of him probably. They'd have to ascertain that they really are taking advantage and it's not just sqq protesting too much.

Out of the two, lqg decides the whole. Cult thing. Is more important right now. Sqq's relatives probably aren't planning on, like. Killing him early.

(He spares a moment to lament how weird his life has gotten)

Anyways defeating opm just amounts to getting evidence of tax fraud from the cult, which lqg recruits his acquaintance from school for (that's sqh. Sqh is having his own whole side adventure involving mbj, lgj, madam meiyin, wqw dealing with inheritance rights and accounting. He is not having fun.) which at least results in mbj princess carrying sqh away from lqg and lbh when sqh throws them all the paperwork for proof of money mishandling.

Opm goes to jail, the Cult is dismantled, lbh and lqg aren't even involved so risk of retaliation is very low.

During this lbh gets to come to terms a little more with his unresolved grief and the mortality of those he loves. He has several conversations with lqg about it, in oblique and acute ways. Lqg is straightforward, and hasn't encountered death as much as lbh, so his opinion is mostly that things happen when they happen. You can't avoid it, you just have to avoid having regrets. Which in turn makes him seriously reconsider just going along with his family's plans for him.  Yeah he was fine with it, but he'd been incredibly lonely and unfulfilled. He thought all he needed was improving himself, but with how close he is now with lbh, he realises  that he was seriously close to never having a friend other than his little sister.

He decides to take his own advice and not let others dictate his life.

This causes a fight with his family, of course, a huge blow out. Lqg insists that he's capable of doing the things he wants to do and handle his own schedule. His family cuts him off as like, a lesson in self sufficiency. If he doesn't appreciate them and their guidance then he can go it alone. They obviously think he'll come crawling back when he realises he has to work or something.

He can't afford his apartment (his family owns it but they tell him to fork up rent or figure it out)

Lbh graciously offers his apartment.

There's a mini arc where lqg adjusts to peasanthood. Lbh helps him get a job, lqg struggles to balance that AND training AND school, but he's always been a hard worker so he figures it out. Lbh insists on doing all the cooking when lqg reveals he knows how to make like three meals, and they don't even taste good. (They're calorie efficient and high protein)

Lbh goes back to volunteering bc that's... kind of a huge chunk of his time. It's his hobby. But he spends a lot more time with lqg which helps him regulate his emotions and stuff surrounding. You know. Dying.

Anyways, it's thanks to this that they get a lead on sqq! An older gentleman tries checking in at the visitor center and lbh would ignore him but he overhears sqq's name and comes wandering over.

"I just wanted to visit shen qingqiu. If possible."

"Oh, he's been checked out by his family for a few weeks now."

The man turns away, dejected, and lbh pounces on him, offering to escort him out of the building. Lbh asks him how the man knows sqq, why he wanted to visit, etc etc.

The man's name is Yue qingyuan. He was a childhood friend of sqq's. They were separated and he's been trying to get back in contact. He doesn't want any regrets. Lbh has a very nice and long conversation with the man, and they exchange numbers.

Lbh is excited to tell lqg the news and they both end up calling yqy to set up a coffee date later on.

They tell yqy about the qius and he corroborates their ill feelings and that sqq was never really close with the qiu branch of the family. Yqy knows where sqq's estate is and the qiu's family home, so he and lqg and lbh decide to make a visit.

Sqq, predictably, is pissed at yqy. (Do we get sqq and yqy's backstory here? No. Sqq herds yqq to a private room to yell and cry at him. That's for them. Idk if it's very obvious but sqq here is a mix of shen yuan and shen jiu so hes terrible but like in different ways)

Lqg and lbh awkwardly kind of stand around while that reunion is happening when they over hear qjl's conversation over phone with someone. They decide, you know, fuck it, might as well eaves drop. QJL definitely says something super suspicious and incriminating.

They go back to interrupt sqq and yqy when it becomes clear qjl is headed in sqq's direction. They give sqq the heads up, sqq admonishes them both but is CLEARLY touched  that they both were concerned about him and came after him. 

Qjl's plan is to get sqq ruled unfit and appoint qjl or qht as the trustee or whatever which means the qius will basically have all the access to sqq's money and estate before he even dies.

Sqq tries to outmaneuver him by preemptively disowning the qius from his heritance, but things do get tied up legally speaking. QJL and QHT say that sqq is unfit and old and obviously being taken advantage of by one of his caregivers from when he was recovering from a hospital visit. (They still have lbh's card and try to slander him Liberally)

Lbh does have to face and acknowledge his manipulative ways, at least in private to lqg and sqq and yqy. Sqq laughs, saying he KNEW lbh wasn't the sheep he pretended to be. That's fine, sqq likes wolves better anyways.

Lqg, after all their conversations about lbh coming to terms with his grief and trauma kind of assumes it's a little more nuanced than trying to just dig gold out of old people. Like, it was more of a coping mechanism where lbh was receiving tangible rewards for being in someone's life, assuring that even if he kept being left behind he was being rewarded as well?

Yqy decides that at the very least lbh cares genuinely for sqq so the rest doesn't matter, but his track record is maybe not the best to be involved with advocating for sqq Not Being manipulated and also probably shouldn't be in the lime light anyhow as he might get in trouble if any of his uh inheritances are questioned

Lqg on the other hand, is like. Best boy. Tutored by sqq, obviously hanging a genuine mentor/student relationship that can be backed with his grades improving (if sqq can still tutor someone he probably still mentally competant) with a wealthy family of his own, there's very little reason for anyone to suspect lqg of manipulating anyone in any capacity. (Him being cut off isn't like, a formal thing at all. And it's doubtful his family would make a fuss about it if it would harm their reputation as well, but it never comes up)

So LQG goes head to head with QJL about sqq's capacity for self governance. qjl is charming and clever, but lqg is earnest and captivating. Lqg definitely puts to use some of the rhetoric sqq tried beating into his head and is fairly pleased when he comes off as articulate and well spoken instead of awkward.

lqg and lbh eventually convince qht that qjl is not seeing sqq's best interests and she takes their side and qjl's quest to get his hands on sqq's money is squashed.

Sqq decides he wants to travel, hires lbh as an attendant, mostly so he has someone else to yell at besides yqy who insists on following sqq around like a duckling. Sqq hates ducklings more than lambs.  (The trip is for yqy to make various contact with his connections and businesses now that he's found sqq.)

It's lqg's family that begs lqg to stop being so self sufficient and independent. They say they'll give him a bigger allowance, a bigger apartment. He can have cheat days for his diet as long as it's within certain limits! Lmy misses him!

Lqg figures he's made his point and sort of goes back to the family. He still keeps living in lbh's apartment bc someone needs to feed lbh's stupid birds and pay the rent and what not, but he mostly eases back into his previous routine.

Lbh and sqq give him shit about it, like he's backsliding, but what is he supposed to do? There's only so much time he can spend listening to sqq lecture with the time difference, and with lbh gone there's not really anything to do but train like normal.

It's only when lmy comes crying to him bc she's feeling so pressured that lqg realises that probably things aren't ever going to change. His family won't stop pressuring him or trying to control his life and it won't stop with him. He doesn't want lmy to grow up feeling like she can only be good at what their family wants from her.

So he tells his family in no uncertain terms that he is going on a vacation. And he's taking lmy. When he comes back, he won't stand for them pigeon holing mingyan like they did him, and if they want him to keep being such a successful Liu child, and not disown them all outright, then they better get comfortable with lmy chosing her own path.

He ends up calling yqy, who arranges for lqg and lmy to join them in a layover surprising lbh and sqq.

(Sqh and mbj are babysitting lbh's birds and apartment)

Lmy delights sqq, who starts early in teaching her the joys of literature and teasing her big brother.

Lbh is also ecstatic, he really missed lqg. Lqg explains to them the ultimatum he gave regarding lmy, and lbh is displeased lqg is basically bargaining his own future for lmy's.  Lqg shrugs it off, he does enjoy his projected career and he's good at it. It's really enough for him if he family stops meddling in the rest of his life. He's pleased to choose who and what he gets to spend his free time on, and it's doubly worth it if that means lmy gets to be who she wants to be right out of the gate.

Lbh reluctantly agrees with him.

Anyways, they spend like two months traveling around having a great time on sqq and yqy's dime.

Yqy introduces lqg and lbh to a BUNCH of acquaintances, a large amount of which are established coaches and martial artists who take a liking to lqg and lbh.

Sqq spends so much time writing, probably memoirs or something.

Lmy is adorable and starts her own journals AND insists lqg start teach her some moves.

Lbh picks up so many recipes. Since lqg is on vacation that means lbh gets to feed him whatever he wants!!! It turns out, lqg just hasn't tried a lot of things and actually enjoys most of lbh makes. (Lbh is going to riot if lqg goes back on a diet.)

They make a cute family.

So, sqq is free, lbh is a little more grown, and lqg isn't just putting one foot in front of the other any more.

There's still some conflict in their lives... lqg's family is hard to work with but he sticks to his guns. It's a little embarrassing when lmy decides she wants to follow in lqg's footsteps and he wants to give her the freedom to do that but also wouldn't she rather do literally anything else. (She would. She would also like to write). Lbh gets very over protective of sqq and yqy bc they are getting older and more delicate, which ruffles sqq's feathers so much he threatens to write lbh out of the will!

Lbh is like "I'm in the will?"

And sqq is like, "don't be stupid, I paid you on our vacation as a caregiver, that disqualifies you from being a beneficiary."

Lqg is in sqq's will. Sqq figures lbh will marry him anyways at some point (lbh is a hopeless romantic) so it's basically the same thing.

(Yqy did NOT know sqq didn't put lbh in his will. He put lqg in his too! So he wouldn't feel left out!!! And he wouldnt feel pressured to rely on his family forever! Now he's got to get it rewritten for binghe!!!! )

I'm not going to write about sqq and yqy dying I'll cry. So it ends there. Happily.

[sholtaglia]

Day 2: Mating Cycles [ pre-heat ]

+ my hc that is "what if sqq sleepwalks?"

Also what if Shen Yuan doesn't feel safe almost all the time, because he is constantly on guard, afraid of being discovered? He isn't sure exactly what behavior and mannerisms are expected from him and therefore avoids YQY at all costs, suspecting there must be some shared past between them.

He doesn't feel comfortable around LQG too as the man clearly disliked the original goods, and some part of this hostility still remains.

And as much as he's fanboying internally around LBH, Shen Yuan keeps in mind that he is his future tormenter.

So, MQF it is. His beloved shidi in this AU. It seems that the og didn't interact much with him, so there was little for him to expect from Shen Yuan. He could be more or less himself, not trying so much to be Shen Qingqiu.

Also he smells so nice.

Shen Yuan mostly ignores his omega instincts, as a person who grew up in a world without second genders. But that smell is like a magnet to him. It says safe, warm, welcome to him.

[bokutoasavillain]

Hello! Could you recommend your favorite System fanfictions?

I have put this off for so long bc I have so many that I love and making a list that big seemed terrifying but I love sharing fanfics so here’s my best attempt <3

Bingqiu:

Tale Within A Tale

Rated T, It is so good!! The concept is so clever and it is such a satisfying read<33

it's you I find like a ghost in my mind

Rated M, a great identity reveal with a lot of dreamsharing

Treading Well-Worn Paths

Rated T, post-canon sqq turns into a kid and yqy and lbh look after him. I cannot tell you how I love this. The characterization, the dynamics, the identity reveal are all so perfect. Everything progresses so naturally and it is so good. The ending is a bit bittersweet and honestly it’s so fitting and just read this it’s perfect

We Are Not Wise

Rated T, in an au where cultivators draw their swords from their souls, sj takes in sy (a bit of blackmailing included). Sy and lbh are both disciples and soulmates. The focus is more on the relationship between sy and sj and it’s probably one of my favorite ways their relationship is portrayed. It is heavier on the angst and I was crying. It is so beautiful <33

The Mortifying Ordeal Of Being Known

Rated T, such a sweet and lighthearted post-canon truth spell fic <33

side effects may include indefinite photosensitivity

This is a three part series taking place post-canon. It’s about relationship development and also character development bc these two are so so young and have so much time to still grow. It is so sweet and also has some genderqueer bingqiu (as a treat)

Also one of my favorite quotes ever that still makes me cry to this day:

“I think I am mourning something that never existed to begin with,” […]“I think I am the thing that never existed to begin with.” (It’s in the third fic)

lonely little heartbeat

Rated E, lbh reverse transmigrates at 15 (I don’t want to spoil it but it’s great)

colored bright green

Rated T, Binghe also transmigrates to pidw and finds out he’s not the only one! It’s a slow burn and so sweet

Now Entering Incognito Mode!

Rated E, sqq flees cqms while lbh is in the abyss and he meets a mysterious young lady, I don’t want to spoil this it is soooo good!!!

I'll make the world safe and sound for you

Rated M, babytrapping (kinda?) its sweet and beautiful

go with the flow

Rated T, no plot just sweet post-canon husbands

End Racism in the OTW -- Infinite First Dates

Rated M, set during the five years sqq is dead, a lot of dream sharing. It’s really fun and lovely and just perfect <33

Type Casting

Rated E, oh god this one is soooo good!! What if sqqs mushroom body was that of a woman? And what if he didn’t remember his death?? And what if he himself assigned himself the role of the female lead bc well she’s a woman now so she obviously has to marry lbh right? Right???

Also sqqs inner monologue is so perfect and so good!!!!

I love this one so much pleeeeaase read it!!

the adventure of tiny bing

Rated E, tiny bingbing!! They’re friends and husbands and silly your honor

Error 404: Shizun Not Found?

Rated M, such a unique concept done so well

Promise Me Your Heart

Rated T, such a sweet and so underrated fic! I love it so much it fills me with all the mushy sweet feelings and it’s so tender and romantic and just sooo sweet <33

We’ll Meet While Rain is Falling

Rated E, amnesia that gets fixed by you guessed it papapa!! (It’s really sweet and tender)

Size Empress

Rated E, genderqueer sqq has a dream and well it progresses really well

Benign Deviations

Rated M, Bingge and Bingmei switch places and it’s amazing

shallow water weather

Rated T, MERMAID BINGQIU!! It’s so good (also anything my nyoomerr is amazing so read them all)

continued

Rated T, this one is really hard to describe so just go and read it it’s so fun and hilarious

To Boil a Frog

Rated M, the narrator in this one is so good and fun and overall it’s great

a gentler lesson

Rated T, KISSES!! SOO MANY KISSES!!!!

I (immortal, M) think I might be developing feelings for my roommate (27M). Help!!!

Rated M, so stupid so good just what it says in the title

A Transmigrator and a Time Traveler Walk Into the Bamboo House

Rated T, I just really love this one! Definitely so worth reading (I might have read it twice)

open my lungs to let you in

Rated T, also one I’ve reread a few times

Can't we just skip to the end?

Rated E, time travel baby! This and the sequels are so good!!

night of yearning

Rated E, lbh gets selective amnesia, this absolutely destroyed my soul

As to Me, As to You

Rated T, such an amazing concept with so much potential for future shenanigans and overall so satisfying

right from the start, I gave you my heart

Rated T, sqq is under an obedience curse when the jinlan reunion happens what could possibly go wrong?

Cumplane:

slow dance with you

Rated T, Kissies<33

I've got $400 and a really bad idea

Rated T, fake dating hehehe

Cumplane Summary Archive

Rated T, Outsider pov and overall hilarious

huddle for warmth

Rated G, so sweet and funny

Bros before... well everything I guess

Rated T, theyre a family <33

Moshang:

The Pen is Mightier

Rated E, Mbj seducing his husband <33

speak your mind

Rated T, sweet and touch starved

technically our marriage is saved

Rated T, so fun

Cold Hands, Warm Heart

Rated T, this is so good! It destroyed me emotionally and just ugh. My notes after reading it: „My chest hurt and oh my god this is perfect and painful and beautiful“

A Child Once

Rated T, post-canon sqh gets deaged and it’s really good

retrograde

Rated T, amnesia and misunderstandings work out

maine nazaron se tujhe chu liya

Rated M, soulmate marks and a bit of mystery (kinda)

If Not You

Rated E, fuck or die and it’s really good. I stayed up reading this until I could not see properly and I was dizzy

Ok this is it! I went through all my bookmarks for this and it took me the entire day. I hope you enjoy and if you ever need anything specific I can probably find it for you<3

[blue-leoo]

A HUGE FAN of SQQ (read: SY) being so motherly down to his core. Every child under his care has called him mom at least once (many times behind his back) they love him so much ! Hes their mother ! He takes in orphans and makes them his students (YQY would love to argue akd tell him they have a protocol on how to accept disciples, but he loves to see his shidi so happy) SQQ is a mother hen !! He has so many children!! Lbh is so JEALOUS but hes also so happy because his shizun is SO HAPPY. All smiles all motherly. Everyone on the peak feels so SAFE with SQQ !!!!!

[grubus]

is there any "what ifs" that you would explore with syonr? like when it's finished, would you write aus of the aus? i've seen some writers do that and i find it so interesting.

yes and no! I have a lot of "what ifs" ideas in my head, but I think there's only one I would ACTUALLY write out? But because I too love aus of aus, let me list a few of them uwu

*clears throat*

What if Shen Yuan had never left Lady Jia? This is the idea I want to write at some point! Would still be BingYuan, with some intense gender fuckery going on <_<

Some others are;

What if Shen Yuan reincarnated as a girl? if you think SQQ is overprotective now, you have seen NOTHING. Binghe would be fighting for his goddamn life. SY would fight for her own dignity, because OBVIOUSLY she has to become a WIFE, but SQQ is weird as fuck about Sweet Girls Under His Protection and the only reason LBH isn't already dead is because SY is frantically wielding her "i'm your widdle baby girl!" powers at SQQ to shield him. There would be no roomie situation. RIP. But NYY would be hyped about having a sister! And SY wouldn't have any trauma from Zhao De, because MF would be like !!!!!!!!!!!! DONT BULLY A GIRL!!!!!!!! which means Zhao De sticks around and focuses his bullying on MF instead. Lovingly. If you guys haven't read "Toxic" by Prim the Amazing yet, well..............

What if Yue Qingyuan managed to take Shen Yuan? This would basically just be PIWD. SQQ would not take it nicely at all, seeing his Qi-ge taking in a mini-SJ and spoiling him rotten. SY would NOT be allowed on Qing Jing at all, but SY is also Binghe-obsessed and Binghe is in turn SY-obsessed. The only reason SQQ would not abuse SY out of pure jealousy and self-hatred is because SY isn't under his control. YQY would be an adoring fool but also SY would probably not feel 100% safe considering he knows that YQY always yields to SQQ in canon... On top of that, SQQ would most likely treat Binghe much like he did in PIWD. There are perhaps a FEW things that would, maybe, make him treat Binghe better out of pure spite but it would take many twists and turns for that. In the end, BingYuan in this would be Romeo and Juliet romance that would end in insane tragedy for all involved and CQM in flames. Unless Binghe manages to run off to Bai Zhan Peak. A big If.

What if Shen Yuan had met *** while at Lady Jia? Well SY would have brought *** with him to CQM instead! Or *** would have helped him escape and then years later............... hmm but that's a different arc.

There's more but :D

[al3zthecat-blog]

I've seen takes about Shang Quinghua pressing the Return Home button (either on purpose or by accident) and I've also read takes where the System for some reason (a glitch or a new mission) sends both SY and SQH to the modern world. And they are great BUT.....

What if SQH pressed the Return Home option (I'm thinking on purpose, but you do you) and the System sent both back home.

Let's say that the System didn't give SY that option because he isn't user number 1 and it was up to user number 1 to make this choice. Only, because the System is such an asshole it conveniently disregarded to tell either SY or SQH this.

So SQH not knowing his choice would also affect SY (otherwise he would definitely use this to get SQQ to do as he says, like getting LBH to give him the best food 😂) decides that he will take his chances on the real world. I'm thinking that he does this in part because the System actually answered when he would wake up and told him that in the real world no time has happened or that he would go back before he spilled his ramen and electrocuted himself. The other part could be that he just panicked upon seeing LGY. Or maybe he never saw LGY and was able to explore and sightsee some of the wonders of the world he wrote about and decided that this was as good as it would get here, whereas now that he lived in a cultivation setting he had so much fucking material. He could even write the danmei version of PIDW thanks to Cucumber bro!

So he activates the return home function and proceeds to write SVSSS, only he changes the name of Peerless Cucumber to another dick joke to avoid getting sued, you know, just in case.

For his part SQQ/SY hears the System saying "Activating Return Home sequence in 3, 2, 1" and he proceeds to freak out, except of course he doesn't have time to properly freak out and/or say anything before everything goes black.

SY wakes up in the hospital, his sister found him passed out and proceed to call 110/120*. Because this is SY and he no longer can hear the System he proceeds to go in denial/repression. "Ah... It was all a dream of course" (and to be fair, this would be more of a normal reaction than how he immediately accepted he had transmigrated 😂).

Until some weeks/months/days!? (Knowing Airplane it was probably days) later, Airplane Shooting Towards the Sky starts publishing an spin off/AU of PIDW named SVSSS.

Meanwhile back on SVSSS world either (and because I love SJ and he deserves a happy ending and because YQY also deserves a happy ending and I want these two to reconcile 😭 and what are fanfics for if not to write happy endings for everyone!?!):

SQQ'S body goes into a Qi deviation and SJ wakes up (resuscitates? I'm thinking the System grabbed his soul while he was deviating and put it into storage so SY's soul could occupy the body). Obviously SJ proceeds to FREAK OUT and runs away to CQM sect.

SQQ'S body just stops working. One moment he is breathing and the next he is dead. Somewhere out there SJ wakes up in a plant body (at some point SQH tried to bring back his favorite scum villain and gifted YQY a mushroom plant body with some precise instructions to care for it without telling YQY exactly what the plant was, because he believed if someone could bring back SJ it would be his soulmate YQY, but in case he was wrong better not tell YQY why or what the plant he gifted him was for)

SQQ'S body basically becomes brain dead. Technically alive, but since there is no soul inside the body it is as good as dead (SJ comes back with a healthy plant body and reconciles with YQY in CQM)

In any of these scenarios LBH will freak out, obviously, but in the case of scenario 1 he would have no reason but to think that this like the first time SQQ lost his memories, only now he recuperated many of them and lost the ones that involve LBH. So I guess the best option for a BingYuan reunion would be to go for 2 or 3 because LBH would be looking for SQQ|SY soul not SQQ|SJ (who is alive and safe in CQM sect) but I don't really care for this pairing soooo 🤷🏻‍♀️

Upon crawling out of the earth, SJ encounters YQY who immediately knows that this is Xiao Jiu, he would have the confirmation of what he already knew, that the other SQQ was not SJ. He still has no explanation to what happened or how SQH was able to return SJ to him, but he is glad and thankful to SQH.

SQH who has disappeared. Literally, his body did a Thanos snap and became dust or simply glitched out. Because SQH was never from this world. He was born in this world and given the role of SQH but his body is technically not the one of the original but supplanted it. Similar to a changeling only it was the System and he did this from the womb.

I don't know how it would go from here, kind of a dealers choice, if you want Moshang and BingYuan(?) HEA or if CumPlane HEA in the modern world. Or happy ending for Airplane who now can dedicate time to write whatever he wants because he already has SVSSS written thanks to the System and while that sells he can concentrate in writing other things.

[chuckduckling]

Okay okay, for realsies now, since I did a QiJiu post on Yue Qingyuan’s feelings for Shen Qingqiu, here are more of my thoughts on SQQ’s affection for YQY.

When I think about what initially drew Shen Jiu to Yue Qi, sparking his loyalty and devotion... I feel like it has something to do with SJ's deep craving for safety.

And by safety, I don't just mean protection. In my other post about YQY, I give some examples for why I don't think SJ saw YQ merely as a source of protection. If anything, he saw himself as YQ's protector, as much as the reverse.

In my opinion, one of SJ's fundamental drives is the desire to feel safe and, just as importantly, a desire to feel like he's around safe people. And by that, I mean the kinds of people who won't take advantage of him or hurt him.

More thoughts and quotes under the cut...

SJ is psychologically scarred into seeing everyone around him as a threat to his safety. Even as a peak lord, with more status and power than the majority of people have, he still feels so insecure that literal children count as potential threats.

Right before the scene where he almost qi deviates, we see how his heart demons have driven him into a deeply paranoid spiral where everyone is out to get him:

Furthermore, Shen Qingqiu had told Ning Yingying thousands of times to stay far away from Luo Binghe and that she wasn’t allowed to get involved with him. So why did he see them every day, whispering together before his eyes? Shen Qingqiu was filled with paranoia; he forever felt like everyone was secretly talking behind his back, discussing how he’d been unable to attain Core Formation even after this long. That it was unbecoming for one in his position. That they hoped to secretly finish him off and replace him.

His visits to the brothel are also explicitly due to the safety and comfort that the women there give him. He finds women nonthreatening compared to men, and he sees them as a refuge from abuse.

All those years, whenever one of his beatings from Qiu Jianluo was over, or whenever he had a premonition of another beating, he had crawled to Qiu Haitang’s room and remained there, quivering. As Qiu Jianluo was unwilling to let his sister see the side of him that was perverse and lunatic, that had been the only place where Shen Jiu could hide. And even longer ago, there had been some girl in their group, their big sis. But after she reached a certain age, that big sis had been sold to a withered old man to be his second wife. Afterward, they’d left that city, so they’d never seen her again. Liking women wasn’t the least bit shameful, but treating women like saviors, cowering within their embrace and seeking courage from them…even without anyone saying it, Shen Qingqiu knew that was horrendously shameful.

Even though YQY is a man, I think SJ's attachment to him is similar to his attachment to the women who make him feel safe. YQY is the kind of person who wouldn't hurt or control SJ the way other men in his life have, and I think SJ has always been attracted to that.

(Also, I talk about why I don't see YQY as a controlling person, even during the times when he and SJ argue, in this meta.)

YQY's temper is generally mild and steady, which balances out SJ's more volatile temper. When SJ criticizes YQ for being "too good of a person", I believe that's actually something he greatly values in him. So much so that, despite scolding him, he prioritizes YQY's safety multiple times across his life, even after YQY breaks his promise, even at the end of his life.

This sister from the PIDW comments section hits the nail on the head:

*whispering, silently floating by* Does anyone here like Sect Leader Yue? I like the gentle top type the most.

In short, I believe Shen Qingqiu is a big fan of 温油攻. And honestly, who can blame him.

[tcfactory]

Hi TC!! I got really sick these past few days so I wasn't able to say, but I loved the in tune chapter as always, and I can't wait for the daemon au!! Having daemons would probably make it easier to reconcile tbh, cause yqy's would hound (badum tss) sqq with concern and protectiveness so he can't assume it's guilt or fear over shared past. The damn thing freaks out if he sneezes for crying out loud, so what gives qi-ge?

Oh no, I hope you are better now. Get well soon!

Since in this AU the original PIDW has daemons too I imagine the original state of things was much of the same - Calamity (YQY's lion) is a goddamn pushover when it comes to SQQ or Harbor (SQQ's wolf), so he backed off to give them space every time they so much as looked at him sideways - but it took just the tiniest push to make him run over and spill everything.

Also they are like. Stupid about each other in so many ways??? YQY and Calamity are super doting, but SQQ is protective of his idiot big brother to the point of self destruction; every time YQY has to leave the sect for diplomacy or business he sends Harbor after them to keep them out of trouble and protect them and then doesn't fucking sleep until they get back because he doesn't feel safe enough to rest without his daemon there.

Like, I'm not sure it will fit in the fic, but I imagine Ming Fan parking his own daemon in front of the bamboo house (he has a ill-tempered big chow chow) to scare people off so SQQ can rest even a little bit because YQY has been gone for like three weeks on a conference and SQQ is on the edge of breaking down.

Dysfunctional idiots, all of them.

[ponderings-of-a-half-elf]

I've been planning this one SVSSS fic in my head for months now, and I HAVE to get it out cause I'm probably never going to write it.

It's basically just the events leading up to SY's transmigration/ SQQ leaving his body. In my mind, SQQ dies there. It's a tragedy in that way. Following the greek tragedy format, it's the fact that SJ can't let go, his loyalty, that's his downfall. He still cares about YQY against his better judgement, and it kills him. He just wants closure, and YQY *just won't give it to him.* All of these issues just keep building up, and SJ's mental health just gets worse. He's incredibly paranoid, plus his horrible PTSD keep him from actually forming connections with anyone besides the brothel ladies. He never defends himself because if *YQY* doesn't believe him, he knows nobody else will, so he doesn't bother. His pride is the only thing he views as belonging to him, so why would he ever ask people to believe him if he knows they never will?

The worst part is, it's SJ's *martial siblings* that contribute the most. LQG inadvertently depriving SJ of sleep and making his paranoia even worse, since he never feels safe, not when he knows LQG could show up at any time, and in SJ's mind is more the hostile and strong enough to kill him if he wanted to. And people always take LQG's side too, like SJ is in the wrong for defending himself and his peak.

It's just. Ugh. So much angst. Unhappy ending.

[kirie-mitsuru]

It has been days but I still can't stop thinking about @/zykamiliah's (idk if I'm doing this right. Am I allowed to @ people I don't follow or talk to ever before? I barely use tumblr until twitter problems piling recently) reply on the breakdown why Binghe's protagonist halo is nonexistent and the one inevitable omnipotent being in Scum Villain is actually the system, which prompt me to see her other opinions on SVSSS and stumble upon her opinion tht the system is the representation of the fandom's wishes... because it has uppend all my preconceptions about the system's modus operadi and her interpretation makes much more sense after I dwell on it a bit too much.

(Below are my before vs after -super duper long- interpretation and explanation on Shen Yuan's system modus operadi from my understanding. Keep in mind that I am not that against the System as a whole coz I feel that it saved Shen Yuan from his death in a sense. Just not out of free goodwill, but more of an exchange which is fair to me coz life is priceless and Shen Yuan is living beyond his supposed time. If Shen Yuan is that against being saved then he can just stop doing what he is doing in my opinion.)

(I may or may not read dozens too many unlimited flow novels which has a much higher cost for just a few days extra of living while Shen Yuan is effectively getting immortality in exchange...)

Before:

I used to interpret the three options -I think in general it usually offers three options- that the system offer SQQ as Best Answer (LBH's preference), worst answer (story characterization preference), and neautral answer (SQQ or the system's preference) due to the too many otome game I played in my youth.

This has caused me so much pain because the only reason SQQ avoid the best answer LBH wanted was his pride and assumptions (which, I later realize, is possibly a cover for how guilty SQQ felt abt his decision that he never believe he deserve any forgiveness or even the right to feel sorry coz he did it anyway).

The one example I remember too clearly for my own good is the one in water prison where Binghe ask if SQQ regrets pushing him to the Abyss. Option A was "yes, I regret it so much!", B was "no, u deserve it", and C was *silent*. Or something along that line.

I had also interpret the three known fixed events (the skinner, the Demon Invasion, and the Endless Abyss... or there may be more but I forgot? I swear the others are just side mission or hidden quest) and the initial OOC restriction as necessary:

OOC restriction is to keep his status and body without too much questions asked due to drastic change of temperament. In idealistic world, SY would be able to live a nomadic life where he sightsee the monsters he is very interested in... but I doubt this is achievable with Yue Qingyuan as sect leader slash overprotective older bro figure (or smtg more sus, but YQY has always make me uncomfortable for some reason, or maybe coz I fear his reaction had he ever realize that SQQ is no longer Shen Jiu) of Shen Jiu. So, he has to stay as SQQ, a peak lord involved w LBH who had history of abusing LBH. Which sucks, but on one hand the system gave SY a second chance at living (bonus of getting a healthy, beautiful, immortal body with powerful status and money to live comfortably) and we know SY very much wants to live. Note that even with this restriction, we know that the other Peak Lords had checked SQQ for possession several times, imagine what they'll do without the restriction?

The Endless Abyss is a rather inevitable and moderately safe, time and location wise, for LBH to unlock his heavenly demon blood. Again, ideally it'll be best if LBH doesn't attend this at all, but people will raise questions since it is well known how favored and powerful LBH is in Qing Jing. On the other hand, I doubt there will be anything that can entice LBH from leaving SQQ by his own initiative, especially far enough to venture to the demon realm, and SQQ is too soft to order LBH to go away for too long. During the competition, there are abundant demons that can cover up the leak of LBH's demonic power when his seal broke, limited and very busy powerful cultivator that is able to subdue and seal LBH -I'm especially glad LBH does not have to immediately deal with Old Palace Master when he is still unused to his shining new boost up-, and a convenient escape route no one will follow him into.

Skinner Event is to get SY used to how life is in this new universe, body, and job. Or at least know the bare minimum expected from him as a peak lord. I was actually surprised the system was decent enough to offer easy mode for this.

The demon Invasion reason was mentioned by SQQ himself. It was a hint for LBH himself on what kind of demon he is. Had he gotten poisoned -or not poisoned lol-, Meng Mo would have known immediately what kind of demon LBH is and told him after getting LBH as his student.

So, I thought these events are necessary, and, so, inevitable.

The scenario pusher dubious help are also the only option I thought the system have and can apply since, you know, it is a system of a super harem porn novel? It's database should only have access to events happening in the novel and that is the only events it has the authority to approve and commence in this particular universe. As in, it can only change who are involved in the scene and when the scene happens, but not what kind of scene it is -which is suggestive and R-18 stuff-. I thought it make sense that even the system will be restricted on what it can do to affect this universe as a whole.

After:

(I am actually baffled by how SQQ never expect tht final deluxe scenario pusher end result... has he not reflect what these scenario pusher been doing to him in front of LBH? The first time he fell for it, I get it. The second time... ehh it hasn't click to him yet maybe. The third time? And so on? After knowing that LBH loves him??? Did he not see the pattern here? I thought he is smart...)

... well, the interpretation of the system's options possibly being the wish of different genre fans of "readers" of SVSSS was... wow. It makes a lot of sense. This explains why that stupid fake jade pendant takes until the very last second SQQ can last before it finishes downloading-! Can u imagine, off screen, there is a poll going for "When should SQQ give LBH the pendant? A. Immediately, B. Suffer first to see the extend of SQQ tolerance and love for LBH, C. NEVER"? Or like those strip challenge thing recently and be like "finish loading when this gets xxxx amount of likes and xxxx retweet"?

Perhaps this is why the missions, and the scenario pusher theme is so different? The original PIDW fans gets main missions, the side &/or hidden quest, while the fujoshi choose the scenario pusher? It would explain why the fixed mission are deliberately painful, coz it is attempting to stick to the original plot, while wanting a more in-depth knowledge on the characters, background, exploration, and secrets. The fujoshis... well, we know what the fujoshi wants 😉

Also, I thought I get why SQQ is so convinced that the protagonist halo is a thing. I actually believed it too because of that scene during the ending of the skinner mission where a perfectly new, perfectly fine pillar? Ceiling? Thing just broke down when LBH is about to be hurt when he is supposed to be unharmed during the actual plot narative. (Although I used to only believe the plot armor works only during scripted scene and it can only protect LBH to ensure the protag can move on to the next scene. If there is a time skip? Ha. Ha. We will never know how much unmentioned pain and trauma LBH goes through off script time -AKA the Endless Abyss and 5-yrs w SQQ's corpse-. It can only guarantee he will be alive and as good as new when the next scene arrive.)

But this makes me realize... why on earth would I think it's something so insubstantial? Because the system said so? Wouldn't it make more sense if it had happened because of the system? Because it is within its parameter to make such absurd possibility happen as long as it can provide valid reason for its interference -which is also due to SY's suggestion in a sense coz SY asked if it can be done so the system may input it as a command and turns out it can make it happen?- So... this explains why the protagonist halo never existed. Because it has always been the system.

If the halo had always been the system's work, this is why LBH is hated coz the system cannot affect people's emotions, thoughts, and freewill.

This is also why the whole cultivation world's hatred, or at least dislike, of LBH makes a lot of sense. I had wondered why did the protag halo seem to move to SQQ instead with the progression of the novel. I mean, consider this: roped into plot via exploration, liked by everyone that interact with him, and multiple death flag avoided (we know the protag never dies unless it's tragedy). Had LBH halo -specifically PIDW LBG's type of halo- been true, then he would have get SQQ at most after he return from the Abyss coz he is now OP and he always gets what he wants -I think if was mentioned that LBG r-word some of his wife by force as well? But no one cancelled him for it, even if only coz he is too strong to fight- if we use PIDW!LBG as a reference. Instead, we have LBH losing SQQ again and again, have his entire intention misunderstood to the extreme by the love of his life, and his reputation in shambles to the point people blatantly sang songs of LBH's 'misconduct' without fearing any retribution from LBH despite being the demon lord.

Besides, I believe the only goal the system impose on SY is to make the original plot better with less or no plot hole, not completely rewrite the novel. (This is also why SY can negotiate his restriction w the system sometimes. As long as it doesn't change the existence of fixed events, it's negotiable?). This is why fixed events are unavoidable too. Like, it has to happen. The how is up to SQQ, which is also a reader by the way, but it has to happen.

But then I wonder what is the point of the system doing this? It receive updates I believe, but is that really worth it to call for help from PIDW No.1 hater who wished every single plot in the novel change minus the main character? Then again, Shen Yuan might be chosen just coz he is too obsessed with PIDW to the point he nearly memorize the entire novel.

I'd like to think that it is also conducting a kind of human moral compass test w Shen Yuan as its main test subject this time coz it never really restrict Shen Yuan's words and actions after the OOC ban was lifted, just "either this happen or you die" but how 'it' happen is up to SY's interpretation and action. The system gives suggestions, but it doesn't force SQQ to actually do anything. E.g. it didn't force SQQ to stab LBH's chest and make him believe SQQ hate him for being a heavenly demon in particular. (I am very aghast when SQQ did this to the point I much prefer how Shen Jiu push LBH to the abyss. At least it's nothing personal (much) with Shen Jiu, just a general demon discrimination instead of "oh it's just u, everyone else gets second chances but not u sorry") The system also never stops SY from holding to LBH's thigh in those 3 yrs of peace despite how the PIDW narrative implies how LBH's abuse continues until he went to the abyss, or at least neglect. Or make SQQ ignore LBH after their reunion 🙃

I'll never know which interpretation is correct and canon, both might be wrong even! But it's an interesting topic to fixate and scrutinize on coz -as always for this fandom in particular for some odd reason- I always have the opposing belief from what most believes in. Like "LBH suck and SQQ deserves better" while for me "Luo Binghe is an angel and did absolutely nothing wrong besides trying too hard to be a good person to someone who expects him to be a demon while battling the influence of OP evil sword", and "everything is the system's fault" while I'm here "does no one see the little things the system is trying to hint at oblivious SQQ??". Not saying the system is 100% innocent -whatever its reason and motivation is, forced nudity and other things is wrong yes-, unlike my very precious Luo Bingmei who is 1000% blameless in my eyes and the number one victim of all the events in SVSSS, but it is also not 100% the reason everything goes wrong.

Conclusion:

Last morbid thought as I wrote this... what if the system's power source is LBH's protagonist halo. It may also be why it can grant it's user (SQQ) the ability to affect the main plot because it is sucking LBH's halo's power to influence the universe at large... this gives me the vibe of beefleaf stealing fate plot that I not want to dwell on or I'll cry. Gah!

Then again, this is just me over thinking something that I will never really know for sure. It's a good food for thoughts tho (and for whatever fic I may or may not write in the future)

[a-mere-dream]

Help me choose my next SVSSS fic?

With my most recent fic set to post tomorrow evening and my concept-production having thoroughly outpaced my writing tempo, help me choose which one to focus on next! I'm a bit overwhelmed by the options myself, so any picks are appreciated, no matter if you follow me or not :)

Possible 3rd part for Two for the Price of One -- the morning after, they discover that the effects of the flower were not as temporary as they'd thought they would be. Exploring Heavenly Demon YQY, and possibly Binghe breaking his seal earlier? Figuring things out along side each other as two freshly awakened stumbling young demons, when every bit of knowledge is third or fourth hand

Airplane as an asexual incubus who instead of having sex feeds on the energy released as people read his books

One of the brave ladies of the brothel down the mountain decides that if A-Jiu wasn't going to visit them anymore seemingly without any reason, then she would visit A-Jiu. Just to see if he's safe and not injured. Misunderstandings get cleared up a whole lot earlier. (Is this with SY or SJ? Straight up SJ would be fun but I don't want this to become one of those "haha now you see" spite fics so it would have to be handled delicately)

Amnesia SJ AU where he ends up like 15 or so, before the burning of the Qiu, but only mentally. Yue Qingyuan & Original Shen Qingqiu, only the pre-est of pre-slash, YQY can really stretch his big-brother muscles here. Xiao Jiu doesn't know how to fold his robes, or fan language, or even how to read more than a dozen or so characters. The Peak Lords obviously recognise some memory loss but they think it's far less than it really is. (At some point SJ sneaks into the records of Qiong Ding. He gets caught by YQY and throws himself into a very deep bow and begs great master that before he gets exorcised, please tell him if a boy by the name of Yue Qi is alright? Did he arrive safely?)

Finish up that 5+1 MuShen fic I already got half-written. This one will be done eventually whether it gets chosen or not, but it's only ever been a back-burner fic for me

Also Two for the Price of One -- smut drabbles of the moment of ah... the curing of Without A Cure and the like O.O

Shen Qingqiu keeps knowing things he doesn't know where he got the information from. Like at some point he steals food of Yue Qingyuan's plate and when QQQ gets all worked up over it he doesn't understand why because surely everyone knows he hates the taste of it?Or he can pinpoint exactly which of his students have lived on the street but that must just have mentioned in PIDW somewhere, right? Premise is basically 'SQQ doesn't know how much has been mentioned in PIDW, how much is common sense, and how much is leftover SJ' (and you say, 'hey, Rene, haven't you already written this in and the same?' and my answer is 'two cakes')

[shinebrightlikeanarwhal]

I am a firm believer in a healthy and happy childhood SJ would not have been in the sect at all and, if anything, the world would have gone to shit faster.

Think about it:

No SJ means;

•Yue Qi is over working himself to death and taking care of the other slave kids

•QJL never took in SJ and used him as his literal punching bag. His perverse actions would either go to another slave or QHT herself (as she was who they were mostly directed at if I’m correct)

•LBH would not have been pushed and hurt to grow but he would have been in extreme danger as the other PLs would rather kill a demon, whether they are a child or not, and present his head to the others as proof.

•God even knows how they would handle many circumstances without SJ since he was an outstanding tactician and strategist.

•He genuinely would have no need or reason to cultivate with them. He could probably be a traveling cultivator if anything. He has emotional connection to these people and would live a better life elsewhere..

•He isn’t traumatized physically and psychologically. He has no physical handicaps to his body to limit himself. He has no need to hold himself back because no one believes him. He would speak his peace no matter what. Whether they like it or not.

•Many people would suffer without him baring their burden. Especially with no one watching SQH so closely? He might actually kill many more kids to get LBH into the abyss.. or the whole sect

•LQGs Qi deviation could have been a violent bloodbath whether he lived by SY or died by SQQs attempts. Anyone else that would come up there may not have been able to think critically to subdue him in time, even YQY.

(PSA: I dont care if you like SY but I call SJ SQQ, that’s his earned name whether you like it or not. Shen Yuan is Shen Yuan just like OOC is OOC he didn’t earn anything.)

Im certain I’ve said something like this before but I will say it again. Your favs piggy backed of SJ’s suffering. (Except QHT, if you fav her pls exit the premises…)

BTW, branching off the “SJ is the reason LbH survived the conference” I don’t mean he had good intentions. I mean his actions gave LBH a chance of survival. The other PLs would not have cared about the consequences of killing their disciple, especially if all they have to do is present his head to show his demon mark. Particularly YQY and LQG, they are not nice people. LQG canonically beats the shit out of his disciples to “build character”. YQY rarely uses Xuan Su but would whip it out if LBH is a heavenly demon…

Branching off the “LQG Qi Deviation”

He was already tricky for SQQ to try and save him in PIDW. In SVSSS SY also had to fight him down to help him to regulate his Qi. Another Pl would also struggle and god forbid a disciple comes, they would be torn apart… if LQG doesn’t die before someone finds him.

YQY being able to cultivate is a gray area because SJ helped him not only survive being overworked, but also kept him safe from the other slave/street kids bs that could possibly kill him or get him enslaved by people like the Qiu’s! Cause let’s be honest the Qiu’s were terrible but more than likely not uncommon of slave owners in xianxia…

There’s a lot to discuss about SJ being basically PIDW catalyst and then getting tossed aside for dumb wifeplots.. but honestly, I’m not in the mood to make myself annoyed with what an amazing og plot could have been if we got more content with actually interesting characters… (GYX… I’m talking about GYX he looked like such an interesting character in novel and show form.. a strong character killed off too early with SY and with no screen time in PIDW…

[hey-hamlet]

Can I hear more about the SVSSS au you posted the other day with Yandere!YQY? Thank you, love your writing!

Anyone who asks about my SVSSS aus gets like. Brownie points. I do know how to pay them out, but know you have them.

So. YQY was ready to spend his whole life pining and hating himself, while eternally saying exactly the wrong thing to SJ and getting reamed for it. But then someone tried to spike SJ's drink at a cultivation conference and he. Snapped a little. That person is very very dead now. So, he has an unconscious Shidi in his arms and suddenly he's like "oh god how do i keep him safe".

So SJ wakes up in a locked room. His first reaction is pure, unbridled panic, quickly stifled by the fact the room smells like YQY. Which he's furious that he noticed, by the way. The panic is then rekindled by the fact his cultivation has been bound and most of his hidden knives are gone.

Any further panic is delayed by YQY walking into the room looking both very guilty and very determined, holding a meal tray with all of SJ's favourites and a very nice pot of tea. The only reason SJ doesn't just throw the tray into YQY's face is the fact that its a very nicely made tea set and doesn't deserve to be a causality of his sect leader’s stupidity.

YQY’s barely repressed fury when he explains what happens makes SJ also angry like - where was this anger when I was trapped as a slave??? But. Also. It makes him a little warm and fuzy. Just a little. Under the fury. 

This AU continues with YQY delivering food three times a day and chatting with SJ who honestly relaxes when he’s not having to deal with children and people he hates. The rest of the peak lords are like - YQY. Where is Shen Qingqiu. And he just. Smiles. They try to break SQQ out because they may hate the guy but this is a little much - but SQQ just yells at them to fuck off. He’s enjoying his holiday! Don’t ruin this for him!

[danhoemei]

Fandom questions:

2, 4, 7

Thank you for the ask amazing person 💚💚💚 (Ask game)

2. Fanfic trope you like?

SO MANY. But if I were to choose just one it'd probably be slow burn. I love seeing the progress of the relationship, live through it together with the characters, want it more and more as I learn about the pair and crave their happiness. And it all gradually accumulates until the tension reaches its peak, then everything untangles and clears out, and I finally experience catharsis. It just makes me so immersed in the story and gives so much more satisfaction than a short and obvious progress. Especially when it prompts the author to create an interesting background and events, because if the relationship takes long then there is usually something else happening as well.

4. Three dramas/shows you’d recommend?

Oh so many but it depends on what you search for. Also worth mentioning that I haven’t watched many dramas yet. I already tried to sell What We Do in the Shadows or The Good Place, so a few other shows I’d recommend: 

MindHunter to see FBl detective cases in the setting of 70s, when psychology was still not considered science and was laughed at. Follow the main characters who want to prove that with psychology we can understand criminal minds - or maybe even prevent tragedies - instead of assuming that people are born evil and it’s inevitable that they will commit crimes sooner or later. A very psychological and interesting story featuring actual interviews with serial kiIIers 

for a short supernatural story - The Haunting of Hill House if you’re okay with horrors and want an incredibly well made story full of rich characters and uncovering secrets of the past and present

for laughs - Misfits, to see a group of completely different people sentenced to community service, who get tangled up together because of an accident which gave them powers. Watch how they try to fit back in and tackle more supernatural occurrences around them, all the while learning about themselves and each other, growing and changing, and finding a family in each other despite all their differences. Warn about gore, expIicit content, crude humor xd It’s been many years since I watched it but I remember it as a fun and light show, I hope it’s not just my teenage self being into weird stupid stuff xD

7. Three songs you listen to?

Hhhh I don’t really listen to anything connected to the fandom (maybe except wuji piano+flute version bc that grabbed my heart). So let me throw a few songs which reminded me of some characters or events.

Brave New World by Kalandra (yt / sp) - xie lian during xianle war in the Cursed Book Four :’) I so would like to make a video with that x0 Would start at the beginning of the war while xl was safe and out of it, then continue to how he joined and tried to save everyone, then his breaking point, and would end with “You woke a fire inside of me / Fanned the flame and made it breathe” with xl @ wu ming who's just a second away from being consumed :’’’) The lyrics just HIT and the music stirs my soul so much, I love this piece and can fit it to so many places xd

Youth by Daughter (yt / sp) - jing qi @ helian yi, at least before his seventh final reincarnation :’) (I’m still reading) or Riverside by Agnes Obel (yt / sp) also kinda made me think about jing qi in the Yellow Springs by the River of Forgetfulness

Landfill by Daughter (yt / sp) - qijiu vibes (shen jiu @ yqy) OR alternatively bingqiu (lbh @ sqq after the abyss, during all the misunderstandings and sqq’s running away).

Darkest Hour by Low Roar (yt / sp) - wwx @ lwj (and partly jc) at the burial mounds siege:

I hope it hurts :’)

[tossawary]

hello ,i like how mxtx writes her characters ,and the different bonds between them, but qijiu is a hot mess that makes no sense ,like how is their relationship so abysmal, like their shizuns never tried to intervene or mend it, their martial siblings didn't gossip about their weird love hate relationship ,no resentment of chunshan a la qijiu , how come the two big shots of CQM are so at odds and no one tries to do anything , they should at least been together for decades and they never had one decent conversation, i find it super weird and unbelievable that the people in the novel are more invested in the teacher/disciple relationship than the hundred thousands words hurt/comfort fic worthy material that is the mess of qijiu, so i d like to ask you what are your thoughts on how their relationship spiralled to the disaster of PIDW

also have a good day

Well, their relationship was always a hot mess, partly because their childhood was horrible. They each thought the other was dead for a while, which was also horrible, and they had no confidants and no one to guide them through a reconciliation. YQY thought that SQQ hated him for failing him; SQQ thought that YQY left him to die and traded him for a better life. 

We don’t actually know what their respective teachers and predecessors were like, but I’ve always assumed that their mentors were rather hard and distant. YQY and SQQ are also deeply private people, so I think it’s safe to say that pretty much no one knew about the depth of their feelings on this; to everyone else, SQQ’s dislike probably read, at most, as childish rivalry. It’s perfectly possible that their teachers were the sort of people who “don’t believe in therapy or mental health”. The Peaks are quite separate and a degree of rivalry between them is apparently common, so perhaps their teachers saw any dislike as not being actually being a problem so long as they did their jobs. 

An assumption I make with YQY’s master (probably the only one to know anything of YQY’s feelings here) is that the previous sect leader taught YQY to continue bottling everything up and hiding everything for “the good of the sect”. YQY’s breakdown appears to have been hushed up (I assume that this “year of secluded cultivation” was “an honor and a privilege” granted to an excellent student, and if YQY died it would have been a “terrible and unforeseen tragedy” but everyone would have moved on). I think that YQY’s master taught him that the sect leader had to rise above his own emotions and attachments in order to lead all of these “lesser people” looking to him for guidance and also to prevent another bleedout of his soul. YQY could have been told “don’t have emotions again or you’ll kill yourself for sure this time”.  

It’s unfortunately realistic that two people could be at odds and just... never move to fix the problem. Neither of them wants to look weak. Neither of them want to be the first one to open up. SQQ resents the power YQY has over him and believes YQY actually wishes that SQQ had died; YQY doubts SQQ’s ability to forgive him and doesn’t want to break the uneasy truce they currently have; neither of them want to air their dirty laundry in front of an extremely judgmental and gossipy sect. Their backstories are not known and they do not want their backstories known. 

It’s also unfortunately realistic that two people could be at odds and no one else would move to fix the problem, because it’s “not their place”, it’s not their problem, it probably doesn’t look that bad from the outside, and SQQ and YQY probably didn’t see each other or work together that often. SQQ just looks snippy and ungrateful; he’s a dick to everyone, so YQY doesn’t seem all that special outside of being the sect leader. I mean, it also apparently takes Shen Yuan a long time to actually run into Liu Qingge and then an even longer time to be near Shang Qinghua long enough to notice that the man is a transmigrator. The Peak Lords aren’t close. 

I write from Shang Qinghua’s POV a lot and Shang Qinghua is an extremely unreliable narrator for many reasons: he’s occasionally forgetful, he’s stuck in the rut of Proud Immortal Demon Way, he’s anxious, he’s resentful, he’s detached from the people around him, and so on and so forth. He’s also an unreliable narrator because (back to the stuck in the rut of PIDW) he perceives too much of some of what’s happening around him. Shang Qinghua can make some extremely accurate assumptions about what statements are triggering YQY and SQQ’s issues, but anyone else might see YQY wince slightly and just assume that the generally genial man just has a mild headache dealing with a man he sees as nothing more than an annoying coworker. Shang Qinghua isn’t good representation for the Outsider POV here. 

Shen Yuan lived as Shen Qingqiu for years and, for a very long time, apparently just thought that Yue Qingyuan was way too nice and accommodating. 

So, like, if anyone in the sect is considering writing YQY/SQQ(SJ) stuff, the reaction is probably, “They’re both handsome, I guess, but you barely ever see them in the same room together. Also, SQQ is a jerk and YQY can do better.” 

[scribble-dee-doo]

more svsss ideas

1. Modern with cultivation moshang au where mbj & sqh have been roommates for like twenty years without actually getting together. are they aroace disasters? are they upholding a wordless agreement that the abandonment issues belong in the closet and Do Not come out? are they too busy to realize that they're actually together until someone else points out that they're the poster couple for human-demon relations? idk! but the heart of the idea is that they've already built a family together, and whatever relationship they move forward with is gently worked into their already existing dynamic. sweet and low drama.

2. about five years post-canon sqh decides he's owed a midlife crisis as a treat, accidentally triggers a real crisis over the fact that for the first time in both lives he's financially stable, nobody's actually trying to kill him, and the system can't force him to do things - he's genuinely free to make his own decisions and he doesn't know what to do with it.

3. this kinda grew out of the previous idea but sqh grappling with his trauma around/thru writing. maybe he was miserable writing pidw and afraid to touch his writing after he transmigrated, has been locking down on daydreams or the idle urge to doodle snippets when he's bored. maybe post-canon after he's out of crisis mode he's actually really having a bad time not feeling able/safe to express any kind of creativity or indulge in a hobby. maybe sqq & sqh bond over their relationship with story.

4. pacific rim fusion - sqh & sqq are drift partners who somehow connected with two aliens on the other side of the breach (you remember those li'l aliens in charge of making kaiju at the end of pacific rim? that's mbj & lbh). yqy is in charge, sqq is a scientist, maybe lqg drifting with lmy? anyway the answer to the Kaiju Problem here is negotiation instead of war but good luck convincing the world council that you need to jump thru the breach to help some aliens fight some other aliens so you all can go home. also sqh & sqq are mildly telepathic now oops.

5. moshang mentoring binqiu in relationship and life things. moshang is like. twice as old as bingqiu? i know this book was a comedy romance but the amount of trauma bound up in these two relationships and the dynamics between all four characters are Wild. the abandonment issues and power dynamics are insane. the only one i can imagine forcing them all to sit down and Talk About healthy boundaries and how you do actually need friends and family outside of your spouse is sqh but the series of circumstances that would 1. give him the insight to talk about any of that 2. give him the courage/opportunity to talk about it 3. force the other three repressed bastards to listen to him would absolutely be enough to fuel as long of a fic as you like. nobody knows why these four get together every month to do double date stuff but they drink So much alcohol and the silencing talismans don't always muffle all the yelling. at least they've moved the actual fighting off the mountain.