Fandom is so nice to Jiang Cheng's inferiority complex because in reality every single thing he gets accused of is something Wei Wuxian is better at than him.
Jiang Cheng killed Wei Wuxian? Nope. Didn't even get close. Wei Wuxian's own spirits tore him apart before jc could even get there. wwx:1 jc:0
Jiang Cheng tortures people? We get two and a half rumours and a mention from jin ling that jc has 'captured' demonic cultivators before, but who is also apparently confident that just letting wwx run off will kill the issue even though those earlier rumours said ~no one who sandu shengshou captured was ever seen again~
The word jiang cheng uses when he tries to talk big game about 'beating the truth' out of Wei Wuxian's is a word that carries the context of pestering someone to do their homework. Doesn't exactly strike fear into my heart.
Wei Wuxian? Excellent at torture. A prodigy. Did you fucking see what he did to Wen Chao? Dude didn't have fingers anymore because wei wuxian made him eat them. He ripped out his hair, burned his skin off, and then stalked him for several days just to prolong the pain. He forced Wang Lingjiao to bite Wen Chao's dick off and then made her shove a stool leg down her own throat! 10/10, no notes. Absolutely horrifying.
Meanwhile Jiang Cheng's idea of torture is getting a dog to bark at Wei Wuxian for a few seconds. Weak, unoriginal, I bet fairy was literally wagging her tail the whole time. 2-0
Jiang Cheng made the entire cultivation world believe Wei Wuxian was up to no good on the burial mounds and ultimately orchestrated his downfall? lol. lmao, even
It's a big thing in certain corners of the fandom to really zoom in one one particular phrase at the end of chapter 73, where after wwx and jc have their staged duel to make the world believe they hate each other jiang cheng tells everyone wwx has defected and become "a public enemy'' or "an enemy to the cultivation world" or whatever the translation you're familiar with decided upon.
(As an aside, something I really like about this line is that the last half of it is almost exactly the same, like verbatim, as what wwx told him to say. like, the chapter is really hammering home just how much jc is speaking from a script here. wwx tells jc to say "今后魏无羡无论做出什么事,都与云梦江氏无关." and jc says "今后无论此人有何动作,一概与云梦江氏无关" the only meaningful difference is that he says 'this person' instead of wwx's name)
I've seen it said that this bit, the use of 'enemy' was said without wei wuxian's approval, that jc deviated from the script just to hurt his ex-shixiong for leaving him. And that this is what caused all the other clans to turn against wei wuxian. Regardless of if this is what jc and wwx discussed, or if jc had malicious motivations for it (considering my conclusions above, you can guess where i fall) it doesn't really matter, because the novel tells us when the clans completely freak out and become convinced wei wuxian is out to get them (though of course they've been wringing their hands about it since the literal day wwx ran off with the wen, months before jiang cheng visited) very neatly in chapter 75!
It's when they find out about Wen Ning.
And how do they find out about Wen Ning?
Because Wei Wuxian took him on nighthunts! And they kicked ass!
...Wei Wuxian, my man, why are you on nighthunts??? Why are you showing off your incredibly cool sentient fierce corpse buddy, who is way better and stronger than all the other fierce corpses, in front of the whole cultivation world??
Whatever his motivations (extra money, maybe?? they were strapped for crash) I can only draw the conclusion wwx had already given up on appearing calm or non-threatening and didn't care if the clans thought he was a threat, because they'd believe whatever they wanted anyway. Which he seems to clearly be aware of the whole time.
Regardless, we know that this is what created the myth of the Yiling patriarch. It's literally when the title first shows up!
Even if you really believe jc was secretly plotting against wwx in chapter 73, he's clearly doing a shit job of it because nothing he said made anywhere near as big an impact as this. Flopped!
The other point people use to argue Jiang Cheng caused wei wuxian's downfall is Jin Guangyao's speech in Guanyin temple about how jiang cheng could have saved wei wuxian if only he stood by him. Setting aside that jin guangyao is trying to get into jiang cheng's head here, and isn't necessarily saying what he really believes (though it very well might be! who knows with a character like jgy. assuming he's always lying is just as misleading as assuming he's always saying the truth) the fact is, if you read the speech closely, what he's talking about is not the 'public enemy' line, he's talking about the bond between them. The fact that people wanted wei wuxian out of yunmeng jiang, because the two were too powerful together.
He's talking about that one time Jiang Cheng very publically kicked wei wuxian out of the sect!
Which, unbeknownst to Jin Guangyao, was in fact Wei Wuxian's idea the whole time.
final score: 3 for you wei wuxian, you go wei wuxian! And nothing for Jiang Cheng bye.
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Harrow the Ninth Reaction - Chapter 33
oooh a random person in the clearing - maybe the Blood of Eden is finally making an appearance?
CAMILLA HECT MY BELOVED where have u been!!!!
and now Harrow is bleeding an awful lot, i am mildly concerned for the health of her brain at this point
yeah actually i didn’t register it before, but it is weird Camilla is in the neighbourhood forty billion lightyears from where we last saw her, given Harrow had to do Lyctor!travel through weird blood soup to get here
she has a piece of Palamedes's skull!!! oh i am not okay rn
PALAMEDES!!!!! ❤️❤️❤️
if i had to read the same bad romance novel for eternity i’d get bored so quickly. Palamedes has the right idea, what better hobby to take up when you’re dead than writing fanfiction?
ahh they’re arguing about the semantics of whats possible in necromancy again, how i have missed this. you don’t know what you have until you lose it
also, if the limits of this bubble are what Palamedes could see at the point of his death - could he see Gideon who was listening in from where he was in the room? because if so…
Palamedes reaction to Harrow becoming a Lyctor, him knowing what she would’ve had to do is just ... heartbreaking. she can’t even explain what actually happened & that Gideon volunteered because she doesn’t know herself. they’re having two very different conversations here.
wait the Sleeper is here, Harrow’s fake memories are imposing on Palamedes’s bubble somehow?! also this is our first real description of them, but unfortunately the Sleeper is dressed all in high vis orange with their face conveniently covered smh
‘You never could have guessed that he had seen me’ WHAT. WHAT. what in the hell is that supposed to mean??? the narrator in these sections isn’t technically Harrow? the fact that they’re in her head, and talking about how Palamedes had 'seen' them really makes me hope that this is somehow Gideon, or at least whatever's left of her?
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Hi hi!!! I’ve got an idea if you’re interested!!
So the reader is an avid literature fan, and they really love Poe’s novels!! One day they meet him and Poe is confronted with the prospect that….. maybe he doesn’t need to keep writing just to possibly stump Ranpo one day…. Maybe he’s already an incredible author deserving of praise,, :’)
^ if that makes sense lol, but I’m super excited to see where your blog goes anyway!! Following immediately <33
a fan?
・ Poe x GN!Reader { Fluff
・ Warnings { None
・ Word Count { 1.3K
・ Masterlist { LINK
It all started when he met a fan. A fan. Someone devoted to his work, someone who enjoyed and loved his writing. He could remember the day like it had just happened. The feeling of his cheeks growing warm, as the tips of his ears reddened with the praise he sought for every time he tried to stump Ranpo with one of his stories.
He also remembers the way he fumbled with his coat and undershirt as the person in front of him would gush and ramble about the different scenes he wrote, the different characters he poured his own attributes into, as well as the attributes he wished he had. He listened with shaky fingers and an anxious feeling bubbling in his chest as they brought up the dialogue he would spend his time reading aloud over and over again until it felt right.
It would be in his next novel, he wrote a character into the ongoing plot who reminded him of the devoted fan he had met out on a walk to gain inspiration.
And inspiration he found.
Inspiration he found in you.
Whenever he felt stumped with his hobby he went on a walk. Down the street, take a right, and pass by that cafe he was always too scared to go into because of how deadpanned the barista looked in the mornings. It was the same route he had met you. Every time he went out on one of his brainstorming walks, he hoped that the two of you would cross paths again.
And like fate intended, that would happen on a random Tuesday about a month later.
The air was fresh with summer approaching as the trees were green with branches full of leaves. A slight breeze flowed about the city, the only thing reminding Poe about his need for a summer wardrobe change soon, as it kept him just cool enough to enjoy his stroll. He walked with his head down, holding a leather-bound book in his hands as he watched his shoes land against the pavement with audible clicks.
“Karl would have loved this weather, it’s a shame he was napping when I left.” He spoke to no one in particular.
“Karl is your pet raccoon, right?”
“Yes, he’s-” His voice got caught in his throat.
He was too lost in his own musings to notice you were right next to him, about to enter the cafe he would usually pass on his walks, clad in a uniform he’d seen somewhere before. It was almost humorous how quickly his expression had gone from deadpanned, deep in thought, to a somewhat frightened look of ‘holy fucking shit’ in a matter of seconds.
He blinked owlishly at you as you just looked at him with a smile.
“Do you come here often?” You pointed at the cafe’s entrance, a crooked smile stretching across your lips as you tried to relieve the awkward tension.
“Uhm- No, not particularly.” Liar. Even though hes never entered the cafe, that doesn’t mean he hadn’t walked past it almost every day when the weather was nice enough for the past three weeks.
“The sugar cookies here are really nice.”
“O-Oh, really?”
“Yeah,” You looked at the cafe doors before turning back to him. “I’ll be considered “late” for my shift,” You made air quotes with your fingers. “If I don’t get in there in a few minutes.”
“Go ahead then, I’ll have to stop by sometime when I can…”
So that’s where he knew that uniform from. His gaze flew to the window as he bit his lip, avoiding eye contact with the deadpan barista who was definitely watching them through the glass. The uniform the barista wore behind the counter was the same as the one you were currently wearing. He looked back at you before speaking, his voice quiet with apprehension.
“Are you guys pet-friendly…?”
Once he had gotten confirmation that the cafe was pet-friendly, for service animals only, he rushed off with the promise of bringing Karl with him on his next visit.
…
It was the next day he walked down the once new path turned familiar with his animal companion in tow. The weather was much like the day before, minus the pleasant breeze. But the heat did not deter Poe as he briskly walked. His shoes hitting the concrete with a familiar clack. Excitement was rolling off of him in waves at the thought of being able to meet up with this devoted fan of his after waiting for a chance to do so for the past few weeks.
“How can I help you?” A monotone voice spoke.
He didn’t realize he was already in the cafe, standing at the counter, Karl on his shoulder, ready to say hello, only for the person at the front counter to not be you.
Instead, it was that blank-faced barista who was always off-putting to Poe whenever he walked by the big windows of the cafe. He could always feel their stare on him when he paced the sidewalks day by day. Only now, he could see the stare and was standing before them instead of walking past the glass.
Well fuck. That’s certainly a way to flip Poe’s switch from 'fine' to 'not fine'.
“Uhm…” He had to say something. Maybe order something? Yeah, that would be a great way to cover up his ignorance of his surroundings. Karl chirped on his shoulder as the raccoon’s tiny clawed hands patted his head. Poe watched in worry as the barista’s gaze went from himself to the raccoon on his shoulder.
“Please tell me that is a certified service animal.” The barista’s tone was unreadable as their eyes moved back to Poe’s.
“Oh- Y-Yes, he is certified. Let me just…” Poe dug around in his coat, unraveling a few yellow-tinted folded-up papers from the depths of his inside pockets. Unfolding the documents and turning them around for the barista to see. He pointed to a few different places on the papers, explaining how Karl is a 100% certified service animal. “He’s a psychiatric certified service animal for anxiety.”
“I didn’t know raccoons could do that.”
“Me neither…”
…
Thankfully, he managed not to embarrass himself further as he sat down with a warm drink that he didn’t remember the name of and a large sugar cookie. There had been other options of course, but you had recommended the sugar cookie for a reason right?
Karl had jumped from his shoulder and rested in his lap when he had sat down. Not wanting to disturb the raccoon peacefully resting in his lap, his gaze shifted about the interior of the cafe, his eyes scanning over the bright pops of color highlighting the various white tables. The turquoise accent wall behind the counter is adorned with diverse eccentric artwork. His focus was broken when the ring of the bells over the door alerted him.
And to his surprise, you had walked in.
While he was hoping to see you, he wasn’t expecting you to show up, assuming you had the day off when he was met with the other barista behind the counter instead of you. He watched as your head swiveled around, making you seem like you were looking for something- or perhaps, someone with how your face lit up when you saw him.
His assumption was further confirmed once you had started walking over to his table. His eyes followed you as you walked over, his head turning as you now stood in front of his table instead of behind him by the door.
“Is this seat taken?”
“No, not at all.”
…
It took meeting a fan to realize something.
It took meeting a fan for him to realize that his novels impacted other people.
It took meeting a fan for him to realize, that maybe he didn’t need to write just to try and defeat Ranpo with another mystery novel.
Poe never even noticed his writing had even strayed from the mystery genre and played more with romance since writing in that new character about a month ago.
Authors Note: I actually cannot believe I managed to write all of those in one sitting. I genuinely think this is the first time I've been able to write over 1K words this easily. Whoever made it this far and is reading this, I need to know your thoughts on this.
I really loved writing this. My first time writing with Poe and while I was writing I decided to headcanon that Karl is a service animal because it makes sense. I hope I nailed his character and it isn't occ. There was something else I was gonna say but I cannot remember, it is 11:33 PM and I've worked on this for at least the past 2-3 hours and I gotta get up in the morning.
Comments and reblogs that tell me what you guys liked or little things that you noticed makes my day. My inbox is still open for recommendations, please check out my pinned post before you drop in though.
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heyyy Not sure if any of you have said this before but I just found out that Athy's palace when she was born, the one where Diana died and it was the palace of the concubines is very similar to Moritzburg castle and I think Athy's Emerald palace looks like the winter palace but I'm not too sure.
Moritzburg Castle and WMMAP's Ruby Palace
I can definitely see the resemblance between the Ruby Palace and Moritzburg Castle! The colors are almost the same (red roofs, yellow walls with white accents). They also have very similar round towers.
Winter Palace and WMMAP's Imperial (?) Palace. Could be the Garnet Palace.
As for the Winter Palace, I think it looks more similar to the Imperial (?) Palace than the Emerald Palace, even if the colors are closer to the later's. The roofs are very similar, as well as the vaguely Greco-Roman columns. Both palaces are very long, and have what seems to be two floors (it's hard to tell when we don't have a good picture of the Imperial Palace), and multiple rows of windows.
While we are talking about this, it seems like a good chance to talk about all the palaces, because... there are a lot. There are five (or six?) palaces in Obelia:
Imperial Palace. The novel says that "all the palaces in the Imperial Palace were Claude's", so perhaps this is just the sum of all palaces. But the one shown above and below looks different from the minimalist Garnet Palace, so I think it's a different building.
Imperial palace?
Garnet Palace. Where Claude lives and meets Athy for the first time. Athy notes that "it's a palace more humble than Ruby Palace" and is surprised that the emperor is using it (that's why I think it's different from where the debutante and the meetings with the nobles take place). According to the novel, Claude's birthday ball takes place here, but the manhwa uses the same ballroom as the debutante.
All these are shown as being Claude's residence/the Garnet Palace.
Emerald Palace. Where obelian princesses live. Athy's residence gifted to her by Claude.
Emerald Palace.
Bonus: Athy's private library that Claude ordered to be build for her.
Ruby Palace. The palace for the emperor's concubines. Where Diana lived and Athy was born. A garden connects it to the Garnet Palace.
Topaz Palace. "A place without any use located in the northwestern area". A forbidden place, though Chief Grandpa says "the area was considered forbidden only to the earlier generations of emperors". This is where Athy finds the book that transports her to the LP dimension.
Sapphire Palace. Where important guests and ambassadors stay. This is where Athy sits on top of an angel statue and Cabel mistakes her for a fairy.
In the manhwa we only see the Ruby Palace, the Garnet Palace, the Emerald Palace, and maybe the Imperial Palace? Again, unclear if it's a different palace altogether, though it is mentioned in the novel.
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