#this was about wei wuxian at the beginning but then i realised how much this happen in media

[friedwizardwhispers]

Me when part of a fandom calls a main character "oblivious" because *check notes* they are not aware they are in a romance novel:

[ninjakk]

Hi

I have been seeing a lot how wwx got lwj drunk to sleep with him lately and how that’s implied in his confession is that true. Idk I’ve just been seeing a lot lately it kinda putting me off wx and mdzs 😭

Hi Anon,

Seriously? That's just ludicrous! Please don't listen to such nonsense 🫂 that's so far from the truth I'm surprised people are even saying something like that!

The scene in question clearly shows WWX intentions from the start. There's no room for arguments or interpretation here, it's pretty clear-cut! But, just to prove this ridiculous take is completely wrong, let's have a look through the text - to put your mind at ease 😉

So, prior to the scene in question, Wangxian have had some pretty poignant moments together. Not only has WWX fully realised his feelings for LWJ, but he's started to understand he has had them for a very long time - thanks to the whole scene with the married couple making him realise his need to tease LWJ was not as straightforward as he originally assumed back as a teen. He is also beginning to take real notice of how LWJ treats him "differently" and hopes that it might be in the same romantic way he evidently feels toward him. Then of course, we have WWX even praying to be "tethered" to LWJ for the rest of his life and secretly declares their two bows as part of their marriage bows!

With all that in mind... Why the hell would WWX get LWJ drunk just to sleep with him 😂 Getting someone drunk to sleep with them is usually (but not always of course) because they feel they will not have a chance with them when the person is sober! WWX thinks he might have a chance to be with the person he loves, he wouldn't ruin that just for (his first ever!) quick fumble in the bath sheets!

We can clearly see the rationale behind WWX's actions:

Just as he was about to pour the liquor, he hesitated, taking that split second to warn himself. If he doesn’t drink, then let it go. If he does, just ask a couple things. Don’t do anything else—just figure out how exactly he feels. He won’t remember anything once he sobers up, anyway… It won’t affect anything.

He swore this to himself before he steadily filled the wine cup and pushed it toward Lan Wangji with perfect nonchalance. He was already prepared for Lan Wangji to reject the drink—but maybe the other man had his own worries, for he picked up the cup without a single glance and tossed it back in one go.

WWX literally tells himself and the reader that he has no ulterior motives. I know he can fib at times, but we know WWX is not some depraved sex offender gagging to jump LWJ's bones! Up until this point he's been rather chaste and sweet! He cares far too much about LWJ to take advantage of him. It's more than obvious WWX has a plan to use Drunkji's trait of speaking candidly and without restraint to find out how the man truly feels about him without having to risk asking it becoming awkward and being rejected if he were sober.

“Let’s play a different game. Just like before, I’ll ask questions and you answer them. No lying…”

He had only just uttered the word “play” when Lan Wangji abruptly agreed, “All right!”

Of course, once LWJ is drunk, things don't go as planned and Drunkji decides to go off on a little adventure, dragging WWX along by the hand for the ride. This eventually results in LWJ becoming dirty and WWX offering to help him wash - none of which were part of WWX's original intentions. WWX even tries to leave LWJ to bathe alone!

Wei Wuxian heaved a sigh of relief. “Take your time soaking. I’ll go outside.” He moved to step outside, get some fresh air and cool himself down, but then heard a splash.

In fact, he tries a number of times to distance himself in such a steamy situation. But LWJ is insisting he stay and being very huffy when he tries to leave, so WWX reluctantly complies.

Here we see WWX's motivations reiterated yet again:

And so, despite getting Lan Wangji drunk, Wei Wuxian spent most of the night waffling and didn’t manage to ask him a single thing. It wasn’t that it slipped his mind. In fact, he hadn’t forgotten for a moment that the reason he had given Lan Wangji alcohol was to ask him, Hanguang-jun, how do you really see me? But every time the words were about to leave his mouth, he found all kinds of excuses to back down—There’s no rush; I’ll play along with him for now, wait until he’s had enough fun before I ask, or I can’t be so flippant about this, gotta be a little more serious. I’ll ask again after we’ve sat down…

But despite the many excuses that had him dragging his heels, the real reason was probably that he was afraid. He was afraid of getting a different answer from the one he hoped to hear.

WWX only wanted to get him drunk so he could ask LWJ how he felt about him without making it awkward. He loves him so much he's frightened of losing him if LWJ's answer was not the same as his. This way, he can find out first and ensure they feel the same before confessing when the man is sober. If his answer was not what he hoped, WWX fully intended to keep his own feelings to himself and stay with him as a friend instead, anything to be by his side. He was frightened of losing the one thing he ever truly wanted for himself.

As we all know, things escalated quickly... and WWX was lost in a blazing fire of desire and passion. We, as the reader, can see LWJ had long since sobered up - thanks to the subtle hints with his speech and actions no longer childlike, as they are when he's drunk. I always felt WWX had picked up on this and at least assumed LWJ was sober by the time they became physically intimate.

Although Wei Wuxian didn’t know exactly when he had sobered up, there was one thing he could be sure of. Since this was Lan Wangji’s reaction now that he was clearheaded, it meant he’d been an unwilling participant in what had transpired earlier.

To me, this indicates WWX not only thought LWJ was sober, but he also thought the other was a willing participant in their love making. He certainly would not have reacted in such a heartbroken way if he had always intended to take advantage of a drunken LWJ just to have sex with him. Overwhelming guilt and disgust washes over him and suddenly WWX is blaming himself for everything that transpired.

I'm not entirely sure if they mean it was implied in the above scene or the Guanyin Temple confession scene. But even from the above, we can see it was not planned or intentional in any way. If they are unhinged enough to interpret WWX's confession during the hostage party as him admitting otherwise - they are completely twisting his words!

“Lan Zhan! Lan Wangji! Hanguang-jun! I…I genuinely wanted to sleep with you earlier!”

It's more than obvious this is NOT, in any way, a confession that WWX got LWJ drunk to sleep with him! WWX is trying to clear the misunderstanding up as quickly and efficiently as possible - and if it shocks JGY into letting his guard down long enough so he could escape his clutches and run straight into LWJ's strong arms, then that's a bonus! WWX could not bear the thought of LWJ being in any distress or pain because of him and he had to get him to realise how much he loved him as soon as possible. It's brilliant! He is literally just telling LWJ that he actually had wanted to sleep with him because he really really REALLY loves him and not because he is some flippant man who slept with a friend in the heat of the moment because he wanted to or to "thank" him in some way - as he had alluded to earlier in an attempt damage control. That's what the above is. Not WWX revealing he had intended to get LWJ drunk to sleep with him from the very beginning!

Overall, such a claim doesn't even make sense. Why would WWX get LWJ drunk to just sleep with him if he already suspected the man had feelings for him? What would that even achieve? I'm going to put this down to Wangxian haters trying to pick and pull at threads that aren't even there to begin with.

Don't listen to the haters, it seems they can't read 🤷🏼‍♀️

[lryghe]

MXTX thoughts; themes

Okay so this was supposed to be a post about themes AND conventions common throughout MXTX’s writing, but I literally wrote too much for one post so I’ve split it in half. This is the half that addresses two of the most prevalent themes splayed across MXTX’s novels. Yes, this post will contain spoilers for all of MXTX’s works (though probably minor ones in terms of plot points). Expect the second half in the next week as I’m kind of busy over the next couple days!

REDEMPTION

In SVSSS, Shen Qingqiu has this genius moment where he realises that he’s now an active part of ‘PIDW’, that the people around him are actually affected by what he does. This comes in relation to (unsurprisingly) Luo Binghe, and the guilt he feels for having been so caring towards him before hurting him so soundly. And this realisation takes 70 chapters but when he does realise this, he actively starts making himself better, so that he’s ‘worthy’ of staying by Luo Binghe’s side, even after all the anguish he caused him. He’s attempting to redeem himself even from the very beginning though, because when he had transmigrated, his very first thought was to change the hand fate had dealt him, wanting to survive past his probable miserable ending in a pickle pot at the protagonists' hands. This wasn’t driven by guilt but over time the guilt complex gradually appears in the picture. 

MDZS is focused mostly on Wei Wuxian’s guilt complex and him working to forgive himself and move past his time as the Yiling Patriarch. Lan Wangji is a key factor in this, his presence being something that Wei Wuxian clings to when he comes back to life after the burial mounds siege. And it’s something so important to MDZS as a whole because it’s so lovely that although Wei Wuxian himself admits he had done horrible things, Lan Wangji is there to help him through it, and he eventually comes to forgive himself for his actions (even if the rest of the world probably hasn’t). I’ve already talked about this before on 4 separate occasions, so if you want more insight just find a post about MDZS thoughts on my page :) 

And finally, there's TGCF. The key characterisation point that Xie Lian has is the guilt he carries over the situation of Xianle and the death of just about everyone and their mum, but over the course of 800 years he eventually moves past it? He even feels guilt over how Qi Rong turned out, something that’s so stupid in the scheme of things, but he’s such an empathetic and intuitive character that he’ll stew in guilt over it anyway. I don’t think this theme is as important to TGCF because Xie Lian is also very mature (one would hope so after over 800 years of living) character, and he states (in one of my favourite quotes of all time) “rather than remembering how I was butchered and trampled hundreds of years ago, I’d prefer to remember that I ate a delicious meat bun yesterday”. And this gives important insight, because he feels the guilt but he moves past it, and Hua Cheng is central to this, helping Xie Lian realise he’s worthy of love, after 800 years of suffering.

LOYALTY

This is a rather obvious theme and I plan to actually write an analysis about loyalty in MDZS specifically, but I think we can categorise it and explore it in two different categories.

Firstly we have romantic loyalty, something that is prevalent throughout all her works considering that they are all romances. Each love interest remains steadfastly loyal to their main character, even through the rise and fall of dynasties, through death and through years of steadfast mourning. It’s so important that these characters remain loyal, because even though Lan Wangji mourns, and Luo Binghe has every chance to sleep with his future 3000 wives, and Hua Cheng could have destroyed his ashes when he lost track of Xie Lian 800 years previous, none of that occurs. They continue holding on to that loyalty and it fuels many of their motivations. You can also point out the loyalty that the main characters have for their love interests. Shen Yuan sits through 1000+ chapters of some horribly written stallion novel because he has some ridiculous crush on the protagonist of said story. Wei Wuxian has a similar type of obsession with Lan Wangji, every second thought something along the lines of ‘Lan Zhan would love this!’. And Xie Lian waits quietly at Puqi shrine for Hua Cheng, no matter how long it took for Hua Cheng to come back to him… “Last time, they spent eight hundred years running towards each other. This time, it only took an instant to fall into each other's embrace.”

Another type of loyalty that could be explored is familial loyalty. Yi Ziyuan, Jiang Yanli, and Jin Zixuan end up dying to protect their home, dying to save their brother, and dying trying to make their wife (and by extension, son) happy. Wen Qing and Wen Ning die to protect Wei Wuxian. Wei Wuxian sacrifices his core for his brother. Qi Rong spends time hanging out in his aunt and uncle's tomb for some weird reason. The various peak lords of Cang Qiong Mountain Sect spend years fighting for Shen Qingqiu’s body. Xie Lian cooks horrendous food, because his mother cooked the same way and even if its not on purpose, he holds true to her memory. This loyalty is the backbone of character backstories, whereas romantic loyalty is more of a plot device, but both are equally significant. 

There’s another version of loyalty that I want to talk about, but I think I’ll save it for my eventual post on analysing loyalty in MDZS.

I may post the second half of this post in a few days (I haven’t finished writing it (I haven’t started writing it)). Until then, goodbye.

Words: 997

Reading time: 4 mins

[mdzs-fics]

Just as the Snow Melts by draechaeli

Canon Divergence 4 chapters 66k words

There was a sudden shout of, “Rich-die!” and then a weight slammed into Lan WangJi’s leg.

There was a laugh—not Wei WuXian’s laugh—from the door, Lan WangJi turned and saw that there were a couple elderly people standing in the door as children filed into the room. Lan WangJi bowed to the elderly people in the door and then one little old lady said, “Is that why you call Xian-gege, Xian-die? Because you have two fathers?”

Lan WangJi’s ears turned red and the elderly people laughed. At the end of the line of children Wei WuXian entered the building. “Lan Zhan what are you doing here?”

“So we finally know little A-Yuan’s honourable surname, Lan Yuan is a good name,” said one of the Grannies.

It took Wei WuXian a moment to realise that it was A-Yuan’s grandmother; she smiled and winked at Wei WuXian. But no one else seemed to realise which of the grannies had spoken so they all tittered about how handsome Xian-gege’s husband was. Wei WuXian looked worried at A-Yuan, wondering how he would react, but the boy seemed to only have eyes for his Rich-gege.

Before he could say anything A-Yuan yelled, “To see us Xian-die! Right Rich-die?”

“Yes,” said Lan WangJi and he scooped the boy up in his arms and then added, “I have a message for your Xian-die as well. Perhaps we could go for a meal?”

Just as the Snow Melts begins on a warm almost spring day when Wen Qing orders a depressed Wei Wuxian to Yiling to spend time with A-Yuan by the river. It turns into so much more, as the Wen and Wei WuXian slowly merge into life in Yiling, leaving the Burial Mounds to the dead.

This is a sweet story of Xian-gege, teacher of children by the river, and the people who know and love him.

An accidental free school is founded in Yiling. Because of his new responsibilities with the dispersed Wen and the many young children he teaches, Xian-gege decides he cannot attend the 30 day celebration of his nephew, Jin Ling. The events beginning with the ambush at Qiongqi Pass do not occur, at least not in the well worn paths of canon.

The story unfolds differently, and includes the destruction of the Stygian Tiger Seal and its aftermath - the sun over Yiling is blotted out by hundreds of cultivators dressed in gold, the Yiling Laozu is declared dead, defeated by the Jin.

Life goes on, with Lan Wangji and Wen Yuan (now Lan Yuan) and a host of other canon characters making appearances now and then.

The story continues through the years leading past a sacrificial array meant to bring back the Yiling Laozu and into a final Discussion Conference in Yungmeng.

To my mind, this is an entirely satisfying canon divergence, complete with relative happiness throughout the story, not just at the end.

[satonthelotuspier]

Assuming Jiang Cheng has at least a passing familiarity with painting as part of his education, but imagine that, when Wei Wuxian starts using demonic cultivation, he paints a portrait of his Shixiong and imbues it with the ability to absorb the resentful energy instead of Wei Wuxian doing so, in some psuedo-Dorian Gray style situation.

Even so, events happen the same as canon, and Wei Wuxian is destroyed at the Siege of the Burial Mounds still, even with Jiang Cheng's secret portrait siphoning off all that excess resentment for him.

The backlash that Wei Wuxian suffered was enough to fully "charge" the portrait, however, and when Jiang Cheng returns to Lotus Pier after the Siege, he's met by a demonic Yiling Laozu, a perfect copy of his Shixiong in every way, except one brought to life by, and brimming with, all the resentful energy the demon's picture had absorbed in place of Wei Wuxian himself.

Perhaps he also takes on Wei Wuxian's personality traits too, the trickster-like mischief, only dialled up to eleven, the Shidi-obsession and so forth. Lotus Pier and Jiang Cheng can't even begin to imagine what are about to hit them.

If we want maximum angst (or possible crack. Or angst-crack), imagine what would happen when Daddy eventually came home from the war (i.e. being dead), to find Shidi-wife shacked up with a cheap demonic knock-off Yiling Laozu.

I think it would be important to note that the portraitdemon!YLLZ, while in theory a perfect copy of Wei Wuxian, would also be much more handsome than Wei Wuxian actually is, and more effortlessly talented.

This would piss the returned real Wei Wuxian off, until he realised that this is the case because portraitdemon!YLLZ is a product of Jiang Cheng's mind, so it's how he thinks of Wei Wuxian that shaped the demon in the first place.

Then he would be pissed off, but a little surprised, and a lot horny. Who wouldn't be when finding out Shidi thinks the sun rises and sets with you, after all?

But they do have a portraitdemon!YLLZ strutting around Lotus Pier, having Jiang Cheng wrapped around his stupid, extra-handsome little finger, while Wei Wuxian is here, in this donated Mo Xuanyu body that can't compete with the used-to-be fourth most handsome cultivator's very good face!

[mhaynoot]

[like not even done with ch2 yet]

finally reading the mdzs books which suprise! i haven't actaully read the books yet despite downspiralling HARD like an absolute fucking free fall into the fandom and fanfiction LMAO but like i watched the donghua, listened to most of the youtube available audiodrama, and read all the manhua already and finally finally finished tgcf so i could begin a new book series with no other attachments.

okay i really thought i was prepared for the books but i'm only like halfway through ch2 and oh my fucking god i'm about to lose it with the cultivation and gentry world jesusfuckchrist. all my foreknowledge does NOT make this an easy read, it makes it an infuriating one whenever i realise just how many shitty fucking rumours are just built to exonerate their so called righteousness and enforce their orthodoxy by creating the perfectly evil scapegoat. wei wuxian is just like - be, for real, a so much better person than i am cause i wouldve raised the cultivation world to the ground what the FUCK

"after wei wuxian's death, judgement of his character was no longer refutable. the discussions were mostly the same, and any small voice of dissent was immediately squashed."

despair for the voice of the contrarian.

i wonder who exactly spoke out or tried to contradict the popular opinions, rumours and slander against wei wuxian? I can vividly imagine mianmian speaking out, of course, even and especially after leaving her sect, probably wondering around, living her life and speaking out against injustice. but i also wonder how many nameless characters were there too?

[ineffectualdemon]

Okay...this is my first ask for you (so sorry if it's a little awkward).....I'm just so happy and excited to find an SVSSS lover blog.....I made tumblr acc because I love MXTX works and want to read more metas about them, but most that I found are MDZS and TGCF blogs, of course I also love them, but my all time favorite are SVSSS (and I have not found a blog that love SVSSS the most, until now).....

So can I ask, what makes you love moshang the most from all of MXTX canon couples (I assume your fav will be something like this, moshang > bingqiu > wangxian > hualian)? And what do you love (the ups and down side) about each couple (bingqiu, wangxian, hualian)?

SVSSS is my favourite probably because it's the strangest to explain

And you're correct on the order of my favourite pairings!

So I'll start with Moshang and why I love them the most

1. Moshang: I think they are my favourite because of all the characters they have been together the longest. And what I mean by that I mean they have had a relationship and been involved directly with each other for the longest. They have spent decades tied together. They met when they were (physically) teenagers and get together when they were (presumably) in their late 30s

And yet they still have the pining and miscommunication because of cultural differences that Airplane should have known about!

That's part of what makes them fun. But also there is something beautiful in that Mobei always comes when Shang Qinghua calls and that Shang Qinghua can't actually let harm come to Mobei if he can prevent it. Even when they aren't on the same page the unwavering devotion and care for the other is beautiful

Shang Qinghua wants to be chosen so he makes Mobei run after him for once and let's himself be demanding and honest

And Mobei allows it, even encourages it to a degree for all his apparent grumpiness

I suppose in some ways it feels like the relationship with the most even footing. Because both of them had been pining in their own way for decades before they actually make a move to being together. It feels like they would have the least misunderstandings after getting together

Also as far as I know Airplane is the only one to punch his partner in the face when he just sticks it in and I love that for them. I like think they end up having the best sex eventually though as they do know each other very well

2. Bingqiu: I love Bingqiu because I like pathetic men being stupid and that's essentially their relationship

No seriously though I feel Shen Yuan does have immense internalised homophobia and the story is less him slowly falling in love with Binghe and more him slowly coming to terms that he is allowed to love Binghe and that he already does

He feels immense guilt for having bent the protagonist but he cannot deny either his feelings for Binghe in the end or how his rejection has hurt Binghe. I just think it's really interesting to be inside a main character's head while he wrestles with homophobia even though in the world he's in he's the only one with homophobia

No one else in the world is homophobic. They do not care that Shen Qingqiu is with a man. They are upset he's with a demon

So all the homophobia exists solely on Shen Qingqiu's mind. It's his personal baggage which he has to overcome more than any external barrier to their relationship and that's just really interesting to me

3. Wangxian: it's the first of MXTX's novels I read and I just love the ADHD/Autistic couple dynamic (which we also get with Moshang). I love how great they work together. I love how we are told at the front that they hated each other and then slowly realise that Lan Wangji has been in desperate pining love since the beginning and that Wei Wuxian was probably in love just as long but didn't understand that because he had so much else going on

And I love the slow slow burn as Wei Wuxian finally starts to understand his feelings

It's just a beautiful story

4. Hualian: honestly? They are only 4th because I have not finished their story. I really really like them but having read only the first two printed volumes I don't know them enough to comment a lot.

I do know that of all the Love Interests Hua Cheng is the smoothest and I respect that but I do have a preference for idiot men in my fiction

[bisexualboysbroadcast]

so I’m ten episodes in (just about to start ep 11— everyone ignore the fact that it’s 1:30am) and now that I have a good grasp of the characters and their names, I’ve gone back to watch the beginning scene of the first episode and let me tell you…not one of my best ideas🫡not only does it hurt so much worse now that I know the who and what…but also catching details and realising how this is getting set up just makes the dread of the episodes I am watching that much worse…because how are we going from my grumpy serious baby tolerating his sunshine troublemaker on their little adventures to whatever the fuck war bloodied death scene? and moreover how does all of this translate to 16 years later when he’s not wei wuxian but is? and lan zhan is still lan zhan?

what I’m really asking is: is the love still there ? will they die for one another all over again?

[rosethornewrites]

11/25-12/8 T & G reading

The usual

Finished

Teen:

Darkest time, by LilacNeko (7 chapters)

Lan Wangji dies and the cultivation world is left to live with the aftermath.

stillness was my comfort, by sami (9th in a series)

There was a funeral. They buried a casket containing eighty kilograms of ballast in his grave.

Guide Me Home, by geethr75 (14 chapters)

When Wen Qing realises that being in the Burial Mounds is killing Wei Wuxian, she decides to approach Jiang Wanyin for help. Little does she expect the result of that decision.

EXTREMELY JIANG CHENG FRIENDLY.

Don't say I didn't warn you.

Whatever you do, by apathyinreverie (2 chapters)

During the attack on Cloud Recesses, both Jades of Lan are captured. It changes everything. Not so much by way of their capture. But rather by way of who ends up coming to their rescue.

(Or, a Wei-Ying-is-appreciated fic. ‘Cause, there can never be enough of those.)

General:

Disliking Seperation, by SallySPT (4 chapters)

Nearly a year after the events at Guanyin Temple, Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian return to the cultivation world to participate in the Cultivation Conference. Many things have changed in the year that they were gone.

Or Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian adopt a child while traveling and the cultivation world doesn’t know how to react.

When Fate Opens a Window, Let Us Fly Through It, by JaimeBlue

Nie Mingjue wakes up during one of the Lan visits to Qinghe with his best friend in his arms, something tied to his wrist, and someone knocking at his door. He finds out the hard way just what it means when a Lan's forehead ribbon is tied to someone else's wrist.

Fate Strikes Again - Come Fly With Me, by JaimeBlue (2nd in a series)

In Cloud Recesses, Lan Wangji wakes up hungover with his forehead ribbon tied between him and Wei Wuxian. He knows exactly who is behind it, but before he can even think of speaking the truth, he discovers Wei Ying isn't as averse as he thought he would be. Things go much better than he expected... and Lan Wangji manages *not* to kill Nie Huaisang.

Unfinished

Teen:

Talking is Better than Silence, by KuroiWrites (blackcatkuroi)

"This path harms the body. Harms the nature of one's heart even more." Lan WangJi spoke those words upon first seeing Wei Wuxian alive after the Burial Mounds, unknowing of the truth.

Wei Wuxian, though, didn't need to be told, and he accepted that he'd lost whatever he might have once had with Lan WangJi. Several nights later, in a moment of drunken weakness under the melancholic light of a full moon, he tells Lan WangJi the Truth. He'd never needed Lan WangJi to spell out his fate for him - he'd known since he walked out of the Burial Mounds alive.

But one small bit of honesty can go a long way, and Talking is far better than Silence.

Shards of Hope, by Dreaming_Days

He had built his life with the coldest calculation. Clawed his way to power with unhesitating ruthlessness. Destroyed anyone who would impede him. Betrayed even the few who had truly cared for him. And, in the end, utterly forsaken, Jin Guangyao died.

Then, 25 years earlier, Meng Yao woke up.

The Twin Ghosts of Yunmeng, by sandupommelfrog

After months of planning to resettle the Wen remnants and stop Wei Wuxian’s terminal decline from demonic cultivation, disaster struck, and Jiang Cheng was left alone, throwing away everything to try to save his brother including his life and his sect. But, he can’t let his own death stop him from his duty to his people or his love for his nephew, and Jiang Cheng breathes again to begin the slog of rebuilding. The years are long, the world is dangerous, and his own health is a daily battle, but Jiang Cheng is not alone this time.

Even with Yunmeng Jiang destroyed, the outside world still fears the vengeance the Twin Ghosts of Yunmeng will wreak upon them, and they will rise again as snakes writhe in Koi Tower and the tangles of deception gradually untwist.

Also a mer au :D

Familiar Stranger, by weavingBlue

Already worried about Wei Ying after he fled Qiongqi Path with the Wen prisoners, Lan Wangji feels driven to distraction by a brilliant and oddly familiar cultivator who keeps popping up everywhere.

In the mean time, the Wen remnants and Wei Wuxian start stumbling across mysterious gifts and supplies when they least expect it.

...Clearly it must be a plot.

Alternate Headcanons, by nirejseki

Random assortment of MDZS ficlets in response to a request for prompts for alternate headcanons for characters

from my paintbrush to your lips, by stiltonbasket (5th in a series)

"...we noted that Emperor Chifeng's consorts left a well-preserved paper trail, as did his sole empress, Lan Xichen (posth. Empress Zhangxing). The highest-ranking consort in the harem was Empress Zhangxing's younger sister, Lan Wangji (Imperial Noble Consort Rui), who attained the rank of huang-guifei during a period of political unrest coinciding with the birth of her first nephew, Emperor Tianjing. Her diaries indicate that she was brought to the palace to serve as the infant Tianjing’s foster mother, and that she likely did not share an intimate relationship with Emperor Chifeng. Her closest relationship seems to have been with Imperial Concubine Ye, born Wei Wuxian in late ----.

"Below, we have compiled a partial collection of Lan Wangji's letters, written over the four years preceding Imperial Concubine Ye's entry into the harem.”

Rabbit Charm, by aoeros

“You gotta promise me that when you’re back home and settled in, I’ll be the first you come to see. Because I’m going to miss you more than anyone else will, Lán Zhàn. Except your brother, of course.”

“Of course. I promise to come find you first after I’ve settled back in.”

“Great! Then I promise to call you whenever I can. And, I will definitely not forget you.”

Instead, by apathyinreverie

Wei Ying is found by someone other than Wen Chao after the Core transfer.

Or, the one where Wei Ying is never thrown into the Burial Mounds, never invents demonic cultivation. He still manages to become the lynchpin of the Sunshot Campaign anyway.

Making Different Choices (For A More Hopeful Future), by Preludian_Staves (locked to signed in ao3 users)

Through a bout of unexpected time traveling, they decide to usurp Fate's plans and do their best to make different choices to create a more hopeful future.

General:

he, who died, is ignorant, by Maxciel_99

Jiang Cheng is thirteen when his eyes lose the shine that has always mirrored Wei Wuxian’s wild spirit. And then no longer is he a shadow of anyone but merely a shell of himself.

Here is a man who is served the world, for once, but he has turned a boy who finally stops wishing and wanting all at once.

_

Or basically, JC time travels somehow and he's acting strange. Likely depressed? Who knows?

What's Your Truth?, by xxxMiaHikarixxx

Lan Qiren brings in class a cursed object for his students to examine thinking its curse can't be triggered since no students in his class hold any romantic feelings for each other. However, the item is triggered. What happens next is quite unexpected.

[cuckoo-among-beasts]

Verse: Demonic Cultivation

Inspired by this post/fic.

TW: a lot of dark stuff, starvation.

Due to having fainted* shortly before Wen Chao took the other guest cultivators to Mount Muxi, Huaisang was never brought along and therefore didn't escape with the others. Instead, he got stuck in Nightless City. Since he was the only one left of the sect heirs, he got the brunt of Wen Chao's ire and got his, although weak, golden core melted by Wen Zhuliu and was then dropped into the Burial Mounds.

*I know Huaisang fainting is a webseries thing, but it fits with my hc that he is sensitive to heat and Qishan seems like a hot place to me. Yes, I know most think he fainted on purpose, but I'm keeping it as him actually being unwell.

Injured, still weak from heat exhaustion and now also without a golden core (even if it was a pathetic core to begin with), Huaisang is certain he will die. It's a miracle he didn't die immediately. However, one thing keeps him alive: the thought of his brother. He knows his brother will worry and he needs to get back to him. But how?

That is when he remember what Wei Wuxian said about resentful energy and the Burial Mounds have plenty of that. Turns out, it's not that different from the Saber Spirits. It takes months**, but he manages to teach himself how to use it, absorbing it into himself, almost making something similar to a core, but with resentful energy. Without the resentful energy strengthening him, at least physically, or rather stopping him from dying, he would have perished. The Burial Mounds barely have any water and even less things edible. The Nie Huaisang that emerges from the Burial Mounds is barely recognisable. Not just because he looks more like a walking skeleton than a man, with tattered Nie robes hanging from his thin frame, but his skin is almost grey, eyes glassy and with a red glimmer in them, hair a matted mess. Even his brother would have to take a second look to recognise him. He looks like a phantom or a corpse, not a human.

**During this time, Wei Wuxian can also arrive, but this can also happen right after.

As he escapes, he only had one thing in mind: getting back to Qinghe, back to this dage. And that's what he does. Once back in Qinghe (and his brother's care), the damage is laid out more clearly. Nie Huaisang is broken: mentally and physically. No one knows if the mental damage, after so much resentful energy and trauma, will ever heal. Physically, he will be okay eventually, but that requires to cleanse him of resentful energy slowly. Very slowly. Too quickly and he will die. At first, Huaisang doesn't have much say in it (and he will also be moved to Cloud Recesses during this time). He's mostly asleep and when awake, he makes little sense, but as time goes on, he regains more control of his mind, especially as he gets physically healthier again. Unfortunately, that's also when the cleansing of resentful energy starts in earnest and it hurts. It hurts a lot. But he also realises that he actually has some power now and resentful energy is very very tempting. Nie Huaisang doesn't want to be cleansed, he wants to keep this power. He can be useful now. He can cultivate, he can help in the war. As expected, this isn't liked by everyone and when he realises that he can either leave or be force-cleansed, he leaves.

Leaving Cloud Recesses, he seeks out the war front, he will help them. He can be of use now. He'll show them. He's not a good-for-nothing anymore.

Other info: Even after he doesn't look like a walking dead anymore. His way of cultivating resentful energy does give him similar skin tone to a fierce corpse, as well as having permanently red glimmering eyes. All in all, he will not look well. He'll look straight out sickly, he will also have a quicker temper and generally be more aggressive.

Edit: For post-sunshot campaign, see here.

[hedgewyse]

1 & 7 for the ask game 💚

Thank you for the ask @mybabybright! 💕 1 - favourite main couple

Once again we have to tackle the 'is The Untamed a BL' argument. Because at 50 episodes there is plenty of time to do some real character growth, and it's the ultimate Good Boy who lives by the rule book falls for the Bad Guy doing evil things and spurned by the society Good Boy has spent his life revering… and I just think Lan Wanji and Wei Wuxian are an unbeatable couple for that. They have layers.

If not Untamed, then my choice is Kang Seo Joon and Han Ji Woo from To My Star. Again, it helps that they have two series so we get growth, and I tend to like more adult plots/problems. I just love the way they learn to live with one another, navigate the awkwardness of life and relationship pain, and adjust to each other. I have a lot of time for 'your flaws don't seem like flaws to me'.

I'm guessing this is a little surprising given my reblogs, but a lot of other mains have a trope that I drool over but I find one of them annoying. These two are one of the few couples where I genuinely love them both.

Others I considered: FighterTutor, PatPran, WeiLan

-------------------------------------------------------------

7 - top 5 bl

The Untamed (if we're counting it!)

Layers, layers, layers. Everything from the names and how they change (or don't), the dynamics around spiritual weapons and who can touch them, the incredible angst around the golden core (which completely passed me by the first watch because I didn't KNOW. I DIDN'T KNOW! I guess I thought yeah he's given up his magic its sad. NO, MY FRIEND! He's given up his EVERYTHING. His status in society which was already strained given he's an orphan. His place as head disciple. His magic. His IMMORTALITY. And thus His Future With LWJ *weeping, I am weeping!* no wonder he didn't want to tell him!). It just has so much hidden depth, and slowly peeling it apart has been like peeling off layers of angst around my poor heart.

Utsukushi Kare/My Beautiful Man

This has such hidden depths. There's a big element of misunderstanding and missed signals between the leads which leads to a really interesting reversal of the uke/seme dynamic. They're both so wonderfully awkward, and eventually realising and beginning to learn to navigate each other is very sweet.

To My Star/To My Star2

For reasons mentioned above already. Also I like that they are working adult jobs and adult lives and trying to make sense of their feelings amongst all that. It's so bloody relateable, honestly.

Love in the Air

Not even gonna pretend. The incredible acting in the high heat scenes is my interest in this (plus a bit of motorbikes I guess). They took one look at how high KP raised the bar, then gave it a Red Bull. There are a bunch of other good things about it, but the heat was it for me.

Semantic Error

This is such a perfect little all-rounder. It's really well paced, there's very relaxed bi rep, the friends feel real, the respect for touching consent is good, the little thrills of experimentation that our very serious SanWoo allows himself, the way JaeYoung is such a good chaotic foil for SanWoos seriousness, how very natural they seem together in the end. It's so Feel Good, I love it. Also it gave us Song JiOh *heart eyes*

Others I considered: Bad Buddy, We Best Love, Kinnporsche, History3: Make our days count

Things I'd like to have included: The Devil Judge (if it was BL), Choco Milk Shake (if it was truly poly), Love is Science (almost poly, almost a BL, not quite either)

[ancientstone]

okay so because I have the reputation of creating weird af crossovers...

Untamed x Frozen

No. Wait. Hear me out.

Also I’ve not seen frozen 2 so none of that’s in here shh

Wei Wuxian is obviously Elsa, with the added twist that Madam Yu is incised that this adopted kid has powers and her husband seems intent for him to take the throne. Wei Wuxian had been adopted, on her part, as an act of notable charity to gain popularity among the towns people and other kingdoms. At the time, Madam Yu didn’t know the (incorrect) rumours surrounding Wei Wuxian’s parentage. If she had, she’d have never agreed to it.

This causes her to push Jiang Cheng (Anna) even more, meaning their imposed 'do you wanna build a snowman' separation is all the more painful. One kid is locked away struggling to conceal don't feel, the other is stuck in an endless, merciless schedule of lessons and sword drills.

The gates are closed, and the castle becomes their isolation.

In a way, Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng swap Elsa and Anna's personalities. Wei Wuxian becomes an extrovert as his means of concealing no feeling, smothering all that fear down as far as he can beneath bright smiles and a bubbly personality. He knows all the servants, all the groundsmen, everyone within the castle walls, and regularly sneaks his way down into the kitchens and cellars, feeling more at home there than in the rigid, oppressing strictness found in the main castle.

He always wears his gloves, though. He’s never seen without them.

Jiang Cheng turns introvert, constantly stuck under the gaze of Madam Yu and with the mounting pressure of being the heir building on his shoulders that only worsens with age. His temper is short, and he will snap and growl and grumble, but he also rarely communicates with anyone unless they talk to him first.

The brothers are still kept apart, though. After Wei Wuxian accidentally hurt Jiang Cheng when they were little, Madam Yu never allows them time together. Wei Wuxian isn’t even allowed at the dinner table, though perhaps that is a good thing, because all their parents do, every night, is argue. The best the brothers get are fleeting glances of each other during big occasions where they all have to turn up and show their best faces.

(And yes, Jiang Cheng has no memory of his brothers powers).

Unknown to Wei Wuxian, he has unintentionally discovered that the key to his powers is love, but he thinks that being with people distracts him enough not to worry about his powers, and therefore have them under control. He doesn’t realise that he’s actually controlling them.

Jiang Yanli is their amazing older sister caught in the middle of all this. Too sickly to be considered an appropriate heir, she is in a marriage arrangement with the Jin, and often spends her time bouncing between keeping her mother calm about Wei Wuxian’s powers, spending time with Wei Wuxian, and trying to pry Jiang Cheng away from his books and his endless sword practice so he can have a break.

Unfortunately, it was when they were on the way to another meeting with the Jin that Jiang Yanli and her parents’ ship sunk beneath the waves.

It’s...a very bleak week. Wei Wuxian all but freezes his entire room.

It’s made all the worse when, instead of the coronation, it's the funeral where Wei Wuxian's powers hit out. 

He and Jiang Cheng get into an argument during the wake, both hurting and so distant from each other in a way they never used to be, both confused and grieving and unsure how to navigate this weird space between them. Jiang Cheng snarls something, bitter and lonely, and Wei Wuxian snaps back, but as he does he releases a mad rush of power, nearly piercing Jiang Cheng with ice. They stare at each other in equal amounts of shock, before, in a moment of sheer panic, Wei Wuxian goes running.

And thus begins the never-ending winter.

Jiang Cheng wants to immediately follow, but he gets held back. He's the heir, his parents never officially made Wei Wuxian next in line, Madam Yu put up too much of a fight for that, and his advisors aren't about to let him go running off into the middle of a snowstorm.

The funeral guests are basically trapped at the castle, unable to sail home on frozen waters or cross previously tame miles of countryside while the blizzards rage. 

This includes Jin Guangyao.

He's quiet, the same way Jiang Cheng tends to be, and he listens to Jiang Cheng in a way no one else does - and there's so many arguments happening in the castle right now, between the kingdoms, between the elders and the advisors and the politicians, about what to do, how to help their subjects and, most pressing, what to do about Wei Wuxian. They speak over their inexperienced, young, yet-to-be-crowned king, disregarding his word because he has a bias towards his brother. 

It's exhausting. He's only just buried his parents and sister. He just wants to grieve-

But Jin Guangyao gets it. As one of the last in line to the Jin throne, he knows how it feels to be tossed to the side and forgotten.

Over the next few days, Jin Guangyao seeks Jiang Cheng out, steering him away from more toxic "discussion meetings" and taking him to quiet corners of the library and down to the stables, where he can escape the intensity and breathe for a moment-

They kiss.

Jiang Cheng immediately bursts into tears, and Jin Guangyao comforts him. It's been so long since someone wanted to be with him, to seek him out and spend time with him and love him...

They are secretly engaged a week and a half into this mess.

Wei Wuxian, meanwhile, halfway up a mountain: LET IT GO! LET IT GOOOO~~

So, realising that Wei Wuxian is going to be killed by these bloodthirsty politicians and disgruntled royalty if he doesn't do something, Jiang Cheng musters up the courage to announce to his most trusted members of staff that he's going to find his brother and put an end to this winter. Jin Guangyao will be in charge while he's gone, and no, this is not up for discussion. 

When none of the guests or advisors are looking, he sneaks out.

As he's getting on his horse to leave, a man a few years older than him appears out of the ether and states that he's coming to find Wei Wuxian with him.

Jiang Cheng: I have literally no idea who you are.

So, this is Lan Wangji, a prince in his own right though not the first heir. After a bit of prompting, Jiang Cheng eventually remembers, albeit vaguely (as is the case with most of his memories regarding his early childhood), that the Lan princes spent a number of months at the Jiang castle, during the fallout of their parents’ failed marriage and reign. There had been a fear among the Lan advisors that the heirs would become targets following the revelation of the Lan queen committing murder, so they had been hidden away with the Jiangs while that storm blew over.

Turns out, Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian had remained in touch ever since, allowing a friendship (read: poorly concealed crushes on both ends) to bloom.

Begrudgingly, Jiang Cheng lets Lan Wangji tag along. 

It’s an...interesting dynamic.

Lan Wangji: I’ve heard rumours that you’ll marry Jin Guangyao.

Jiang Cheng, turning bright red: W-What?!

Lan Wangji: Very soon. Just met.

Jiang Cheng: SHUT UP!!

Their journey goes amazing. They lose the horse. They nearly die from the cold. Wolves chase them across a bridge that should’ve collapsed three decades ago. But eventually, they make it to the big ass ice castle at the top of the mountain.

MEANWHILE. 

Jin Guangyao is doing his Project Manager thing, arranging for the local people to be cared for and gaining a lot of their trust in doing so. He helps them find food and wood for the fires, and sets up many of the children in the great hall.

(He’s also gained the interest of his so-called father, who, let’s say, is very intrigued by the notion of his son getting in favour, and perhaps marrying, the new, malleable Jiang heir. After all, their last marriage alliance is off the table...)

When Jiang Cheng’s horse arrives without its rider, the Jiang officials go into a panic, fearing that their only heir has died. Jin Guangyao decides that he will be of most use remaining at the castle, after all, Jiang Cheng left him in charge and at the moment he’s the only one given official authority by the soon-to-be king. So he requests Nie Mingjue to head out into the storm in search for the missing heir. 

Actually, heirs, seeing as Lan Wangji went with him.

(Lan Qiren forbids Lan Xichen to go as well.)

Nie Mingjue does not trust Jin Guangyao as far as he can throw him, but begrudgingly agrees, gathering some of his own men and a number of guards and solders from the other kingdoms (though he’s the only royalty leading the charge). 

He does, however, give his younger brother a look of - Watch him, something’s wrong here - Before he goes.

MEANWHILE MEANWHILE.

Anna when she arrived looking for Elsa: Elsa? Are you here?

Jiang Cheng, kicking in the door: WEI WUXIAN GET YOUR STUPID ASS DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW WHAT THE FUCK-

Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng’s relationship, strained at best and non-existent at worst, takes a few critical hits here. 

Wei Wuxian is completely thrown off by the presence of Lan Wangji, because oh, hi, crush I’ve had since I was a kid, funny seeing you here, ain’t this a coincidence? haha!

They talk. Or, more accurately, Jiang Cheng hisses/begs/snaps/demands Wei Wuxian to come back down the mountain to the castle.

“They’re going to kill you if you don’t! Can’t you see that? I can’t save you if you’re hiding up here!”

Wei Wuxian refuses, remembering the ice he accidentally shot at Jiang Cheng during the wake, remembering how he hurt his brother all those years ago, how his powers go fragile and off-kilter and all over the place when he so much as thinks about the castle.

No, everyone is safer if he’s up here. Jiang Cheng will make a great king, and he can’t cause trouble.

Jiang Cheng: Wait...Do you...Not know?

Wei Wuxian: Know what?

Jiang Cheng: Oh. Crap.

Lan Wangji and Jiang Cheng have to break the news that he’s set off an eternal winter and it’s causing pain and grief to literally everyone. The funeral guests are trapped at the castle. The crops are withering under the snow. Food supplies are starting to suffer and sickness will soon spread if the cold continues.

Wei Wuxian freaks out. Big time. 

He ran away to escape, to be free, to cause the Jiang family no more grief after so many years making them suffer trying to suppress his power and protect their children. Now he’s not only hurting the Jiangs, but the kingdom, as well? Oh no. Oh no no no no no-

His power begins to swell. In his ice fortress, a blizzard whips. Lan Wangji tries to reach him, only to be shoved away as Wei Wuxian attempts to flee. Jiang Cheng, yelling after him, fights against the wind to reach his brother, yelling at him to stop, to think, let me help you, Wei Wuxian! If you work with me we can-

Jiang Cheng takes ice to the heart.

Woops.

Not realising what he’s done, Wei Wuxian sends Lan Wangji and Jiang Cheng out the closest window in a swirl of raging snowstorm, determined to keep them away from him so they can be safe, the force sending them scattering far over the cliff. In the chaos of it, the two become separated, Lan Wangji landing near the ice bridge leading up to Wei Wuxian’s castle and Jiang Cheng tumbling down through the trees like a very angry snowball.

They land in soft snow don’t worry.

Lan Wangji instantly starts scrambling up to find Wei Wuxian again.

Jiang Cheng is pulled out the snow by the boot by a bemused Nie Mingjue.

Jiang Cheng: Don’t you dare say a word.

Nie Mingjue vows not to (with a certified Big Brother smirk), and he sets Jiang Cheng down, helping him get the snow out from underneath his shirt collar because HOLY HELL THAT’S COLD.

Then, he and his men all blink in shock as a long, lone streak of ashen white curls down a lock of Jiang Cheng’s hair, from root to tip.

What proceeds is five minutes of grown men panicking, Jiang Cheng insisting that he feels fine though he’ll admit this is an odd turn of events, and no one noticing the guy awkwardly stood further down the path waiting for a chance to speak.

The man is Wen Ning, who saw Jiang Cheng go flying and wanted to make sure he was okay. He lives on these mountains with his sister and family, and they’ve been confused by the sudden spike of people trying to walk up their mountain passes in the icy conditions.

When he sees Jiang Cheng’s hair, Wen Ning recalls his parents having helped a little boy with whitening hair once, many years ago when he was small himself. His parents are dead now, but his sister is a doctor, and knows a bit of magic, so maybe she able to help?

It’s as good a plan as any.

Nie Mingjue decides to go with Jiang Cheng to the Wens, sending the rest of the makeshift troops up the mountain to find Lan Wangji.

This...proves to be a mistake.

Because the thing is, these men turn up at the castle to find Lan Wangji struggling to get by the GIANT ICE MONSTER Wei Wuxian has made to block the door, mistake this BLOODY GIANT ICE MONSTER as something attacking Lan Wangji, and proceed to charge at the HOLY HECK THAT’S ONE GIANT ICE MONSTER, making it, understandably, very, very mad.

Snow flies in all directions. Men are bellowing. Lan Wangji is yelling at them to stop. The monster smashes the ice bridge and hurls boulders down the mountain slope.

Lan Wangji manages to get into the castle during the confusion, and puts himself between Wei Wuxian and the soldiers, his sword in hand and ready to protect Wei Wuxian.

Nie Zonghui, one of the Nie guards, tries to talk him down, tries to talk both of them down, asking them to come back to the castle so they can fix this and put an end to the winter.

Then, with a deadly snap of a bow, one of the men from a different kingdom (Su She, Nie Zonghui thinks, if he’s remembering right) fires an arrow straight at the two. Wei Wuxian acts first, shooting out ice to freeze it and then more at Su She, forcing him back, which prompts the other men into action, charging forward in attack.

Lan Wangji fights bravely, he and Wei Wuxian back-to-back, wincing every time he cuts a Jiang soldier or a Jin guard. This will be bad for his kingdom, for their politics and treaties, he knows, but he can’t let them get to Wei Wuxian, he can’t-

The ceiling caves in. He and Wei Wuxian dive to avoid it. The world goes black.

MEANWHILE MEANWHILE MEANWHILE.

Nie Mingjue has successfully escorted Jiang Cheng to the Wens, and not in the nick of time, because the young not-yet-king’s hair is steadily turning white, and the cold is starting to effect him.

Wen Qing is no-nonsense and hardy in a way Nie Mingjue respects, and when she asks if there’s anyone who can deliver Jiang Cheng an ‘act of true love’, she’s immediately sceptical of the new secret engagement. Jiang Cheng, however, insists, and Nie Mingjue agrees to get him back to the castle asap.

MEANWHILE MEANWHILE MEANWHILE MEANWHILE.

alright I’ll stop

Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian have been locked in opposite prison cells. Wei Wuxian’s is steadily frosting over as he panics, and Lan Wangji is quietly talking to him, trying to calm him and promising to get him out and away.

They...talk.

They’ve been talking for years, in the form of their many letters, but this is the first time in forever since childhood that they’ve actually spoken face-to-face. It’s nice. There’s a warmth in Wei Wuxian’s chest when he talks to Lan Wangji, and slowly the ice in his cell thaws and recedes.

Like I said, Wei Wuxian has actually figured out that love holds the key to his powers, but doesn’t know it yet.

This is put on hold when Jin Guangyao and Nie Huaisang turn up, and press Wei Wuxian for answers on how to stop this winter. When Wei Wuxian tells them he doesn’t know, Jin Guangyao leaves with an obvious concealed temper. Nie Huaisang stays, however, and comments breezily, “You know your brother is engaged to him, right?”

Wei Wuxian: Huh?

Nie Huaisang: Yeah, apparently they’ve been getting all cozy.

Wei Wuxian doesn’t like it, at all, but eventually sags down to the floor, and comments that it’s probably for the best. At least Jiang Cheng will have someone to look after him when Wei Wuxian cannot. And if his brother loves this guy then...

“I don’t want him to be alone. I’ve left him alone for so long already.”

Nie Huaisang leaves without another word.

MEANWHILE MEANWHI- *sniper shot*

Nie Mingjue arrives with a struggling Jiang Cheng at the castle, practically tripping over his younger brother on his way from the prison cells. Jin Guangyao is there in a heartbeat, whisking Jiang Cheng away, and Nie Huaisang narrows his eyes after them.

Now to the scene which made me think of this au in the first place.

Haltingly, as he’s dragged over to a couch, Jiang Cheng recounts what happened to Jin Guangyao , and what Wen Qing said. He’s so cold, his body feels numb and his chest burns with ice. Almost all of his hair is white now, gleaming like frost against his purple Jiang colours. When he speaks, it’s as if he’s talking against a great chill, his words barely escaping chattering teeth.

“Please...” Jiang Cheng says, smiling that small, shy, hopeful smile Jin Guangyao came to know over their hushed week and a bit together. “Please, you just need to-”

“Oh, Jiang Cheng.” Jin Guangyao purrs. “If only somebody loved you.”

Jiang Cheng freezes, figuratively, as his supposed fiance splatters water over the fire and flings open the windows. He listens, shivering and silent, as Jin Guangyao details his plans to marry into the family, to do away with the last Jiang blood son in some terrible “accident”, and how he will execute Wei Wuxian to put an end to this winter.

It’s all so surreal, and yet...

Jiang Cheng believes it. He can see how it would all play out. 

Who would want him, anyway? A quiet voice in his head asks.

Certainly not his father, who wished Jiang Cheng wasn’t in line for the throne.

Certainly not his mother, who wanted someone stronger and wiser and better as her son.

Certainly not his brother, who locked him out one day and barely ever spoke to him again.

His sister? Perhaps. But she loved everyone. There was not a soul in the world she could hate, no matter what they said or did.

Who does Jiang Cheng have? Who does he have?

Jin Guangyao locks him in the room, the wind sweeping in and chilling his bones, and Jiang Cheng realises he’s going to find the Jiang advisors and funeral guests and propose that he execute his brother.

As the final blood Jiang, only his word can stop it, can override it.

He’s not dead yet.

Which is how the Nie brothers find him, struggling to open the door as he grows weaker and weaker. Jiang Cheng is barely able to babble out what’s happening before he starts dragging himself towards the prison cells, the brothers helping while arguing over Jiang Cheng’s head over how to save Jiang Cheng. 

Nie Huaisang insists that getting Jiang Cheng to Wei Wuxian will save him, but Nie Mingjue doesn’t see it - Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng are so distant and their relationship so broken, what could-

Then he realises. Jiang Cheng is literally going to let himself die just so he can save Wei Wuxian. In the prison cell, Wei Wuxian had been so relieved when he discovered Jiang Cheng wouldn’t be alone, “I don’t want him to be alone. I’ve left him alone for so long already.” He was going to run away just to protect his brother.

The prison cells are...a mess.

The walls have caved from a powerful, icy blast. The two prisoners are gone. Outside a storm rages. The ice of the water is frozen thick, rising so high that ships tilt upwards as if cresting giant waves.

In the distance, mere shadowed figures, is Wei Wuxian, Lan Wangji, and Jin Guangyao.

Nie Mingjue and Nie Huaisang drag Jiang Cheng after them, huddled together as they fight against the wind pushing them back.

Out on the ice, Lan Wangji shouts for Wei Wuxian to go, that he’ll hold Jin Guangyao off. Wei Wuxian, against his better judgement, listens, believing that getting away will end the storm threatening to kill them all. He needs to put distance between himself and those he loves, he needs to get away-

The ice is cracking, splintering, sending huge, jagged zigzags out across the water like a dangerous spider’s web. One such races towards the Nie-Jiang trio, aiming straight for the Jiang heir.

In an act of utter bravery, Nie Mingjue shoves Jiang Cheng and Nie Huaisang out the way as the floor snaps beneath them, his own body plunging down into the sub-zero waters. Nie Huaisang screams, racing to the edge and reaching to haul his brother out, barely latching onto the material of his brother’s cloak. 

Jiang Cheng, sprawled on his knees, tries to help, but he’s so cold, his fingers are turning blue, and when he glances over towards the fight he sees Lan Wangji collapse, his hand curling over a spot on his back where something (a magic talisman? some kind of dirty, sorcerer trick?) burns.

Jin Guangyao turns towards Wei Wuxian, who has paused in his running, staring at the crumpled form of Lan Wangji. Jiang Cheng can see them talking, exchanging unknown words, and Wei Wuxian’s face shatters, his eyes wide with tears.

Then his brother falls to the ground, sobbing, and, with a rush of power so chilled it leaves frost hanging in the air, the storm turns silent.

Wei Wuxian isn’t paying attention.

Jiang Cheng gasps, his heart stuttering, as Jin Guangyao approaches Wei Wuxian, sword drawn, face expressionless, his footsteps careful and calculated.

Wei Wuxian isn’t paying attention.

With a strangled cry that’s lost to his frozen throat, Jiang Cheng throws himself forward, running, running, running to get there before that sword can swing, before it can pierce, before it can slice in half the only family he has left-

His screeched “NO!” echoes as, with one final beat, his body blooms into solid ice, shattering the sword as it comes down towards Wei Wuxian.

Jin Guangyao is thrown backwards, and not a second later has Lan Wangji’s blade at his throat.

Wei Wuxian stares, openly gaping, at the statue that was his brother.

“Jiang Cheng?” Standing, he cups Jiang Cheng’s face, slides his hands down to his shoulders, pats his body, as if this was some kind of bad joke, a prank with a horrible payoff. He almost wants to laugh, in disbelief and horror. “Jiang Cheng, Jiang Cheng, no, no, no...”

A wail breaks through his throat, and Wei Wuxian flings himself forward, hugging his little brother whom he hasn’t hugged in, fuck, decades. He’d missed his brother so much, his fellow trouble-maker, his best friend, the person who used to sneak into his bed when they were tiny so they could make up stories and sneak down to the kitchens.

Until Wei Wuxian ruined it. Until he ruined everything. He always ruins everything. He’s dangerous. He can only ever cause harm to those he loves-

“Wei...Wuxian?”

He startles, suddenly painfully aware of the material he’s holding, of the solid body within them, cold but alive, breathing, speaking-

“Jiang Cheng!” He sobs, clinging to his brother, who clings back just as hard, burying his face against his shoulder, his hair a perfect, perfect black. “You’re alive! You’re alive!”

“What happened?” Jiang Cheng’s voice is muffled by Wei Wuxian’s shoulder. “I don’t...”

“An act of true love will thaw a frozen heart.” Nie Huaisang pipes up, and they all glance at him, holding up a very soggy but miraculously not-dead-or-bright-blue Nie Mingjue (seriously that guy’s built like a tank). “Saving your brother was an act of true love.”

Cue Wei Wuxian FINALLY realising that he’s has, in fact, known and used the answer to controlling his powers this entire time.

He’s...actually kinda sheepish about it.

Don’t judge him. It’s been a tiring day.

ANYWAY we get the happy ending where Jin Guangyao is shipped off to who-cares-where to serve a lifetime sentence, the funeral guests are finally sent home, Nie Mingjue get, like, a cold at worst, and Jiang Cheng gets crowned king (big brother is very proud. maybe cried a little. Lan Zhan, don’t tell on me!)

And, next winter (or preferably sooner, if Jiang Cheng can help it, he’s not putting up with these two for a moment longer than necessary) a certain wedding is set to take place.

[righteousinadversity]

Gui Dao - A Brilliant Subversion

Gui Dao is set up as evil, corrupting cultivation from the beginning, and it is a very deliberate misdirection.

I have spoken before about how Gui Dao is not harmful, about how the popular fanon of recasting it as the main issue that led to Wei Wuxian's downfall completely dismisses the extreme trauma and stress Wei Wuxian went through and so on.

And while CQL is a major factor for why this fanon is popular, everywhere, I think another reason is that Resentment, or Gui Dao, is set up as what caused Wei Wuxian's downfall.

For much of the novel, in fact, right up to the Second Siege where we get the Burial Mounds arc flashback, the novel gives a heavy impression of the story being about a hero who fell, committed crimes, and the present timeline is his redemption arc, or him realizing his own faults and becoming better, his second chance, what have you.

But it is not.

Because he cultivates the Demon Path, Wei WuXian’s powers had backfired and he was ripped to pieces.

This proves that one can only cultivate by following the right path. Using these dishonest practices would only seem beneficial at first glance. Look, what happened in the end? Not even a whole corpse was left of him.

I think we all know that a lot of the opinions about WWX in the prologue is, well, utter nonsense. However, the prologue does give us the general belief of the public, and certain facts as well, regarding the Siege, it is simply that it does not give the whole story.

The storyline of the present is very much in a mystery setting. What did WWX do? Why did he do them? What the hell is that arm? Who's the guy he's running from?

Something MXTX does a lot in MDZS is 'showing without telling' and she kicks it up a notch by telling us, almost the exact opposite.

So we are meant to realise from the moment the prologue describes WWX as a vengeful monster and WWX wakes up with no desire whatsoever for the same, that this book is not going to be a straightforward one. MXTX uses this in multiple other instances, like WWX's optimistic and devil-may-care attitude in the face of being hurt, LWJ's care for WWX, JC's claim that he can't protect WWX (What bullshit) when he absolutely could have and was morally obligated to, and so on.

A lot of fanon spawn from the telling, which is disproved by the showing, but people simply... disregard it? Don't see it?

Anyway. Moving on.

JC's first scene and the consequent Dafan mountain scenes also tell us that Resentful Cultivation was what led Wei Wuxian to his downfall and to becoming the monster he was described to be, especially when we pair it with his comment in the CR arc. But, like in the Mo Manor, it also shows us that the same cultivation is being used to save the junior ducklings, who apparently are always in close proximity to imminent death.

And in a similar vein, also shows us, that while JC does hold resentment for demonic cultivators, it is not because WWX became a demonic cultivator that he killed him, in fact, JC wants to kill and torture demonic cultivators because they could be WWX, and he'd rather torture a thousand suspects than letting the tiny possibility of WWX live happen. His hatred is centred around WWX, not the cultivation.

Jiang Cheng spoke grimly, “Break his legs? Haven’t I told you? If you see this sort of evil and crooked practice, kill the cultivator and feed him to your dogs!”

He thought that, after so many years, no matter how much hatred Jiang Cheng had held for him, it would have disappeared long ago. He didn’t expect that not only did it not disappear, it became richer as if it was a jar of aged alcohol. At the present time, his hatred had grown to affect even people who cultivated like him!

Jiang Cheng warned, “That’s enough. It’s fine if you talk about it, but don’t actually walk such a crooked path.” (CR arc)

When you reread, these are especially scenes I hardcore side-eyed, because JC had no issue, none whatsoever, with WWX's cultivation path when it benefited him, and the YMJ. And even then, it was his jealousy and general selfishness which leads him to abandon WWX, as opposed to hatred for the Cultivation path.

Now, regarding Gui Dao itself, we get this, said by WWX, as a response to JL thinking that MXY has fallen to demonic cultivation.

Although the cultivation method that he used in the past was often criticized and, in the long term, it harmed the cultivator’s health, it could be mastered quickly. It was also especially attractive because there were no limitations as to the cultivator’s spiritual powers or talent, making it so that there were always people who secretly practised it to find a shortcut.

Basically, this goes in with the general belief held by the cultivation world about Gui Dao. That it's easy, its a shortcut, its harmful blah blah blah, which when you look at their fear about WWX, and WWX specifically wielding that power really sounds like a bad case of sour grapes, and for multiple reasons. (I'd be more willing to care if the cultivation world wasn't openly using WWX's inventions based on the same, so-called, crooked path to aid their night hunts, but here we are.)

1) Gui Dao does not affect someone's health. WWX's health is not good at all when he came back from the BMs, or even during the Burial Mound arc, but that's not because of Resentful cultivation. It's called Malnutrition! And PTSD! 2) This is specifically framed as what JL believes, and JL whose uncle JC goes around dragging back anyone who he suspects for a demonic cultivator, and also because to JL's knowledge, WWX, the grandmaster of the Gui dao, killed his parents. He doesn't have reason to believe it as any good, which he outright says after Yi City.

Finally, Gui Dao is never once shown as being easy, and even Xue Yang the only one we actually see use the same cultivation, is not up to the same level as WWX, even with WWX's personal notes. It seems easy when WWX does it, certainly, but well, again, grandmaster. Also, about the Yiling Laozu imitators, while they are mentioned around 3 times, we never hear about any of these so-called imitators doing anything significant. So WWX's level of control of Gui Dao is not an easy thing.

Now, coming to the CR Arc.

“The essence of exorcising demons and annihilating ghosts is to liberate! You do not study the methods of liberation, and even think about increasing their energy of resentment! You reverse the natural order, and ignore ethics and morality!”

“Then, let me ask you again! How do you make sure that the resentful energy only listens to you and does not harm others?”

Lan QiRen raged, “If you thought of it, the cultivation world would not allow your existence! Get out!”

Hello, foreshadowing. Again, here, Gui Dao is implied to be the very reason why WWX eventually becomes the enemy of the world. Here, WWX is not theorizing or actually thinking of inventing Gui Dao, he saw that LQR was being prejudiced and biased towards him, and he says the things he knows will outrage LQR and his stubborn belief in orthodoxy or whatever the hell he is going on about.

(Also side note, that Resentful Cultivation does not, in fact, reverse the natural order. WWX states it as an alternative to suppression, which doesn't really fix the problem, or elimination, which calls for, well, literally eliminating the soul)

That, being said, a very, very important piece to note, is this response WWX gives to JC, in the prior mentioned comment about resentful cultivation.

Wei WuXian smiled, “Why would I leave the nice, broad road, and walk on a single-plank bridge on a dark, narrow river instead? If it really is that easy, people would have already walked on it."

Again, this points to the fact that Gui Dao isn't something to be invented on a whim, or something easily learned.

It is meant to make us question, of course, why WWX invented Gui Dao in the end?

There is, of course, the whole issue with the Nie Cultivation and its similarity to Gui Dao, and how it causes qi deviation, and while I would love to explore that, this is not the post for that.

Basically, Nie Cultivation causes unreasonable tempers and qi deviation and has since they were established. Gui Dao is never shown to cause these things, especially in the present timeline when WWX is not carrying the weight of the world and the horrific traumas constantly.

Anyway, its similarity does give the impression that it was what happened to WWX; that his cultivation drove him to a murder spree. That he fundamentally changed after his return from the Burial Mounds.

For example, WWX's scene in Empathy, where he is furious at JZX. This seems uncalled for, but when we get the background of the whole soup incident, much later, it makes far, far more sense.

Then the Burial Mounds arc. I have written about how this arc subverts every assumption we make up to that point, but it also subverts what the novel has insinuated from the beginning, that WWX was corrupted by Resentful Energy.

WWX uses resentful energy to save the Wens, to protect them from the world that would see them dead. He uses Gui Dao to protect himself from an ambush of 300 archers who specifically weakened him with the intention to kill him. He uses Gui Dao in a battle declared by the sects on the innocents he protected.

WWX was never corrupted. His heart did not change with resentful cultivation. Wei Wuxian's story is not a redemption arc. He has always been morally good, and the events people held up as his crimes were the victor's side of a brutal killing of innocents.

What resentful cultivation is, is a powerful, powerful tool that the sects salivated over or used and then denounced as heresy. It is not even like the Nie Sabres, that drives someone to irrational tempers and certain death. The wielder decides its nature, like normal cultivation. It certainly is not the reason for WWX's downfall. That would be the entirety of the sects, the classism, JGS, JGY and JC's absolute bs and so on.

I firmly, firmly believe that MDZS is a novel you have to reread. There are so many nuances we miss in the first read, because a lot of the information comes in fragments, and quite literally with regards to WWX's past.

When you talk about Gui Dao, please note that WWX uses Gui Dao consistently in the present timeline, and he does not ever, ever, ever become 'corrupted by it'. He never once is even driven to take revenge on the people who killed him! Instead, he is there, saving them from certain death, because his heart has never changed. The Burial Mounds and the War made him harsher during the Sunshot, and the World turned on him afterwards, and he continued to do what he believed was right in his heart.

Gui Dao is insinuated as WWX's downfall, the corrupted form of cultivation that turned a brilliant young man into an irredeemable villain. But then, it goes on to say, he was never a villain, and the reason for his downfall was his adherence to his morals in a corrupted society, not the corruption of the morals themselves.

[wangxianficrecs]

Follower Recs

~*~

Hello Mojo guniang! I hope your stress is a little less now that you have Mod L to help you! Take some time for self love~! I would like to rec three fics if that’s possible? It’s foxxian🦊. They are “All According To Plan” by cerbykerby , “in the arms of the angel” by ScarlettStorm and “more than you’ll ever know” by appledtea! Hope everyone enjoys them @sandriya-artemis

All According to Plan

by cerbykerby (M, 3k, wangxian, my bookmark)

Summary: There is a fox in the Cloud Recesses, and the dragons have not known peace since he arrived.

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Wei Wuxian makes sure his new husband and the entire Cloud Recesses know exactly how he feels about marrying into the Lan dragon clan. [based off of my threadfic]

~*~ in the arms of the angel

by ScarlettStorm (E, 38k, wangxian, my ❤️bookmark)

Summary: So there was this jar, and it had so much peanut butter still in it, and when his fox nose scented it and didn’t catch any poison or spoilage, what was he supposed to do? Not avail himself of this gift? No. He shoved his delicate little snout right in there and got to licking, but, you know… Elegantly. Definitely not snarfing and making horrible little fox sounds and rolling around on the ground while he went ham on the jar. Sure, he had to work a little bit to get at the last of it, but anything good is worth working for, right? So finally, triumphant, no longer starving, and maybe a little thirsty now from eating half a cup of peanut butter in about two minutes, he’d tried to remove his head from the jar. Operative word tried. Or: Wei Ying gets stuck. Lan Zhan helps.

~*~ more than you’ll ever know

by appledtea (M, 3k, wangxian)

Summary: It is only after their marriage that Lan Wangji realises he had severely underestimated his husband’s poor memory.

~*~   .   ~*~

Note to self: Hmmm, this seems like this should be the beginning for a compilation post. Y'all, should compilation posts happen here or on @wangxianficfinder, which do you think?  I do have a #fox wei wuxian tag, although there are only 8 fics in it.

[besanii]

I need to know what caused Wei Ying to finally initiate a physical relationship with Xichen. Was it for Lotus pier and what the empress said? He does seem to have some feelings towards Xichen so did he not mind it bc of that? What does Xichen think about this whole thing ahhhhhhhhh so many questions. Sorry Lan Zhan cause ngl I ship them

[ part one (LWJ) | two (LXC) | three (WWX) | four (LWJ) | five (NQY) | six (WWX) | seven (LWJ) ]

[ follows on from six ] 

Alive.

The word washes over him like a wave, bringing with it a rush of joy and relief—his brother is alive—that lasts only a heartbeat before the significance of the news comes crashing down.

His brother is alive.

An arrow to the shoulder, the report had read. Knocked overboard in the heat of the battle and disappearing under the churning waters; for days they searched, picking through the bodies floating amongst the debris long after the Dongying forces had retreated. 

They found him, a day later, half-drowned and delirious with fever, unable to fight. News of his death in battle spread as he lay in his bed, one foot already through the gates of Hell and yet still strategising, planning, during his brief moments of lucidity. Conscious enough to know that they can use his perceived death to their advantage.

And indeed with the loss of Gusu’s greatest commander, their enemies pressed them harder, forcing them to cede waters they had previously held strong. Little did they know they were being lured into a trap, one that would decimate their fleet and end the battle once and for all.

“And how is Hanguang-wang now?” Lan Xichen asks. Only years of experience keeps his voice tightly controlled and his hands relaxed as they rest on the spacious desk before him.

“Replying to Huangshang, Hanguang-wang asked this lowly subject to pass on the message that he is well and not to worry,” the messenger reports. “Hanguang-wang has also said he will stay on to fight until the war is won, as is his duty as the commander of the fleet.” 

As a brother, Lan Xichen knows he should recall Lan Wangji from the front lines, allow him to return to Caiyi to nurse his injuries. As Emperor, if his best commander reports he can continue to fight and his staying on increases their chances of victory, then he has no reason to refuse. As a man—

He tells himself the rush of relief that courses through him at the news is because his brother is well; he does not allow himself to entertain the other reason. It is too shameful to admit, even to himself.

In the end, the Emperor wins out, as it always does.

“Very well,” he says finally, pressing the tips of his fingers together as if he is giving serious consideration to Lan Wangji’s request. “We will grant Hanguang-wang the right to stay, as reward for his loyalty.”

--

He does not call on Chenghuan Hall.

He tells himself it is to give Wei Wuxian space in the wake of such momentous news, to allow him to process it fully in his own time without the added pressure of Lan Xichen’s presence. It is a flimsy excuse, one he knows does not fool his Empress at the very least, whose knowing looks and raised eyebrow has his insides twisting with guilt and shame like a child caught stealing treats from the kitchens. So he avoids her palace too, and seeks refuge in the Imperial study until late in the evenings.

A whole month passes where Lan Xichen does not allow himself to see Wei Wuxian. Wei Wuxian does not send word to him either.

He wonders if he’s left it too long, whether Wei Wuxian would be upset or angry at their situation—at him, for putting them in this situation. If it is too late to show up now, after a whole month of silence, and try to make amends. 

Fortunately—if one could call any part of this fortunate—the decision is made for him when Wei Wuxian himself walks into the Imperial study one night and kneels in the centre of the chamber. Lan Xichen watches dumbly as he prostrates himself, forehead pressed against the tips of his fingers on the cold stone floor, his hair loose and unbound, spilling over his plain white robes, the very picture of contrition and penance.

“This lowly concubine pays greetings to Huangshang,” Wei Wuxian says, his voice loud and clear in the quiet of the study. “And humbly seeks your forgiveness.”

“Wuxian...” Lan Xichen begins hesitantly. He breaks off, looking around at the eunuchs stationed around the study with their heads bowed. “You may leave us.”

It is only after they file away, closing the double doors behind them silently, does Lan Xichen allow himself to cross the chamber to where Wei Wuxian is still kneeling. He hurries to help him up, grasping him below the elbows, but is met with resistance as Wei Wuxian stubbornly keeps his head and shoulders bowed.

“Wuxian,” he says helplessly. “There is no need for this.”

“This lowly concubine dares not stand until Huangshang has forgiven me for my transgressions,” Wei Wuxian replies, still in that formal, wooden tone of voice Lan Xichen has come to know too well. He sighs.

“It is cold tonight and you are barely dressed. You will catch a cold walking around like this,” he tells him gently, softening his grip on his arms. When Wei Wuxian still refuses to budge, he sighs again and tilts his face up with two fingers under his chin. “There is nothing to forgive, you have done nothing wrong,”

There is confusion and wariness in those grey eyes as they finally meet his, two emotions he had hoped never to see again.

“Huangshang is displeased with me,” Wei Wuxian says quietly, tightly, as if he would fall apart if he raised his voice. “Ever since the report from Jinghai. Huangshang can no longer bear the sight of me, now that Lan Zhan—” he bites off the name with a pained twist of his mouth.

Lan Xichen recoils as if struck. He had known the nature of their relationship before his brother’s departure, and their plans for his return. But hearing his brother’s given name, such an intimate address used so freely and without thought, is a stark reminder of what he had done. Who he had taken.

Wei Wuxian knows it too, from the shudder that runs through him as he exhales, and the way his hands curl into fists in his lap.

"This lowly concubine does not dare presume he has any right to beg forgiveness for putting Huangshang in such a difficult position,” he continues, the barest hint of a waver in his voice. “I only wished to let Huangshang know that he does not need to trouble himself over this any longer.”

There is a ring of finality to his words that immediately catches Lan Xichen’s attention.

“What are you saying?” he asks warily. “Wuxian—”

Wei Wuxian shuffles backwards, putting enough distance between them so that he can prostrate himself once more, touching his forehead to the floor.

“This lowly concubine begs Huangshang to grant me the death penalty.”

“No.” 

The word forces itself from Lan Xichen’s lips before he even realises he’s spoken, a spontaneous, visceral reaction full of hurt and fury beyond his control. For a long moment after, he cannot speak around the vice clamped tight around his chest, squeezing the air from his lungs. Wei Wuxian replies, but his voice is only a faint murmur against the blood roaring in his ears; he cannot see his face to read his lips, but Lan Xichen already knows what he will say.

“You cannot ask that of me.” The words rasp painfully against his throat. “I will not be the reason for your death.”

Wei Wuxian raises his head and Lan Xichen freezes at the sight of the tears in his eyes, the same hurt, the same helpless fury colouring his cheeks and knitting his brows.

“And I am not willing to be the conflict that destroys the relationship between brothers,” he cries. “I cannot—I will not do it. Huangshang. You cannot ask that of me. Please do not ask it of me.” 

He lowers his face to the floor once more.

“This lowly concubine is only alive today because of Huangshang,” he says, voice small and trembling but with an undercurrent of steel. “I should already be dead. If Huangshang grants me the death penalty now, it will only be putting the situation to rights once more, and Hanguang-wang will be none the wiser upon his return.” 

Lan Xichen reaches out a trembling hand toward him, but stops short, hand hovering just above the top of his head. He cannot ask this of him. As a brother, and as a man, he cannot do it. As an Emperor—

Almost as if sensing his indecision, Wei Wuxian raises his head, leans into the palm of Lan Xichen’s outstretched hand and smiles as those long fingers mould themselves reflexively around the curve of his cheek.

“This lowly concubine will never forget the kindness and affection Huangshang has bestowed upon me,” he murmurs. “So if there must be a sacrifice, please let me make it in your place.”

--

TBC (yes I have just decided there will be a part two to this)

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buy me a ko-fi!

more paper-thin fic | verse

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Notes

Such drama! Much angst! 

Sorry this took much longer than anticipated, mostly cos I’ve been devouring ancient Tezuka/Fuji fics and falling back into the ancient Tenipuri fandom in the past couple of weeks. So, uh, don’t be surprised if my next thing is Tezuka/Fuji instead (☞ﾟヮﾟ)☞

[liathebookwyrm]

The ONE time Lan Qiren got drunk...

...and it all went downhill from there.

Lan Wangji commits petty crime and Lan Xichen is adorably (and uncontrollably) hyper, so what would Lan Qiren be like drunk? The answer is cuddly. Extremely cuddly. All the repressed kids-are-adorable instincts come to the foreground. His nephews spend a few hours looking for him all over Cloud Recesses, and eventually find him surrounded by delighted baby Lan. There are sketches. Traded under cover of darkness and on pain of...well... Lan Qiren finding out....

Lan Xichen and Lan Wangji are just waiting for the right time to remind him of the whole incident. It finally happens the next time he tells off Wei Wuxian for coddling the itty bitty Lan. Lan Wangji -completely deadpan- hands him one of the sketches and makes a comment about following their elders' example.

It becomes an open secret among the juniors that if you spend enough time around the main family of the Lan clan you will be functionally adopted by at least one of them. And by open secret I mean it takes exactly 0.5 seconds for Lan Xichen to find out. Fortunately for the juniors (less so for other parties), he is fresh out of seclusion and still somewhat bitter about the state of the world.

And thus begins Lan Xichen's quiet campaign to invite the children and heirs of every single prominent cultivator that ever annoyed him for the Lan summer school, and then make sure they are in his (still somewhat) disreputable brother-in-law's class. Wei Wuxian loves the kids anyway, it won't be a hardship to him. And of course, it's Sect Leader Lan! Known for his kindness and generosity! Inviting their children! No one suspects anything. Well... No one except Lan Wangji who is fully on board...

Then again, Lan Wangji sees the small army of children and his first thought (after how much Wei Wuxian will love having more ducklings around) is "Perfect! More helpers for the bunnies". One of the compulsory classes for the lectures is proper bunny care, with practical sessions. At this point the author would like to remind everyone that the bunnies are not, in fact, pets. They are wild animals. Lan Wangji just happens to feed them. And pet them. And look after them. And bring them to the occasional meeting if he needs extra help to stay calm.

Imagine if you will, Chief Cultivator Lan Wangji just sitting at the front of the meeting room, stroking a bunny like a Bond villain and making all his visitors super nervous. He does is deliberately whenever sect leaders Yao or Ouyang are visiting. It happens in Jin Ling's first major conference, he's quietly freaking out because poor baby just wants to do his best and Lan Wangji's dad instinct goes ding! so he just calmly walks up to the Jin delegation, pulls a baby bunny out of his sleeve, hands it to a very confused Jin Ling and walks back to his seat like nothing happened.

That's how you know the Chief Cultivator likes you: he lets you pet the bunnies. Although Jin Ling does wonder how he's supposed to act all powerful and intimidating with a fluffy ball on his lap. Wei Wuxian wonders if giving Jiang Cheng a bunny might help him not look so angry all the time. Lan Wangji won't allow it under any circumstances.

Jin Ling inherited enough of the awkward gene from his father that he would straight up ask Lan Wangji how to look scary like him while holding a bunny. Then he would probably realise what he said and make no eye contact for the rest of the week. Although he does keep sneaking glances at Lan Wangji during the conference, because Lan Wangji is doing an excellent job of looking intimidating as all hell while holding two very sleepy bunnies....

As always co-authored with/enabled by @sswangxian