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ghostclowning · 4 months

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#tgcf #qi rong #he is my toxic bbygirl #so what if he eats humans we all have bad habits #my wife qi rong

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yumemiruuuu · 4 months

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New Year art of TGCF from BiliBili

They’re so babies 🥺

Look at Qi Rong and Mu Qing

And Shi Qingxuan showing off their new outfit to our Beef Boi

AND HUALIAN BEING THEIR ADORABLE SELVES AAAAA

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eyes-of-nine · 4 months

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I know it's completely not the point but like wtf was the plan for the xianle throne after xie lian's first ascension??? for a bunch of ppl so sure their crown prince was going to ascend and become a god they didn't really worry about a lack of a second crown prince (you know just in case) yeah sure they didn't last long enough to really have to properly think about it but like who were they going to put on the throne????? FUCKING QI RONG????? bc that would go great??!? HUHH????drought, famine, war and plague aside that kingdom was doomed from the moment xl ascended 💀💀

#my beautiful darling wife(literally just a kingdom)doomed by the narrative from the start😔👉👈#aghsgs part 1 of book 3 was like a treat made specifically for me an idiot who likes to focus on everything except the point of the story .#...... also qi rong #who i personally would love to study under a microscope #there's so much wrong with him and yet here I am rotating him like a screensaver #tgcf #tian guan ci fu #heaven official's blessing #tgcf spoilers

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kiitschw · 4 months

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why does he looked like he's about to give me head

#qi rong #night touring green lantern #he got tiddies for no reason #my little guy #slutty wife #why is he like this #heaven official's blessing

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nessberry · 4 months

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qi rong did nothing wrong!! (he's done just about everything wrong and I love him as if he was my own wife)

#and those are my true and genuine feelings #leave him alone!!#hes just my wife!!!#qi rong #tgcf #heavens official blessing

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vamputer · 4 months

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if qi rong has a million fans, then i am one of them. if qi rong has ten fans, then i am one of them. if qi rong has only one fan, then that is me. if qi rong has no fans, then that means i am no longer on earth. if the world is against qi rong, then i am against the world.

#qi rong is my horrible wife. if u dont like the atrocities get over it 💪#ive loved that green beast for awhile now but his donghua design did something to my brain chemistry in the worst possible way #tgcf #qi rong #vernposting

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neige-leblanche · 1 year

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🎁 Qi Rong >:)

putting @lunaruleseverything on blast for this one:

but also

#ask #QI RONG MY CANCELLED WIFE #these r so fun theyre like a scavenger hunt through my camera roll #in case its not clear qr is telling xl to shut up there lmao

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biboomerangboi · 9 days

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My friend was watching the show for the first time and they brought up a misconception that I think we see a lot in fandom. So I want to talk about The Gamblers Den and specifically this scene in particular:

My friend genuinely wondered what Hua Cheng would do and then when they heard his explanation they were even more confused:

They basically messaged me saying, wait Hua Cheng would have made the bet. He bets people’s lives and some how Xie Lian is okay with that. How???

And to anyone else who’s thinking the same thing or falling for the Demon King vibe Hua Cheng is trying to sell here I am here to tell you, you have all been duped.

What’s import to understand is that Ghost City actually came from making one of Xie Lian’s ideas work:

Xie Lian is talking about a specialised market here, a place where the common people couldn’t just stumble into without reason and that’s what Ghost City is and The Gambers Den is the foundation of it. While Xie Lian didn’t say hey go gamble, Hua Cheng is taking a risk and playing into his greatest strength and then showing of for his crush is the most dramatic way possible when talking about it.

For Hua Cheng the house always wins! Literally. Or at least what he wants the bet to be will always happen. His luck is just that good. If the gambler wins it’s genuinely because Hua Cheng let him.

In the Den he is acting as Judge and Jury with Xie Lian as his moral code but he can’t just turn down the deals. If he does then these people could go to less safe options (looking at you Qi Rong) to get what they desire which negates the reason he built Ghost City in the first place.

Hua Cheng has to let these people play by his rules if he wants to follow his Gods wishes. So he has to be creative and look at loop holes, phrasing and Xie Lians most important teaching finding the third path.

For this moment specifically giving the options I think Hua Cheng would have taken the 20 years of his daughter’s life. Why you may ask? Well the phrasing is easier to manipulate. While the eradication of his competitors is pretty well laid 20 years of his daughters life is pretty vague.

Option 1) Hua Cheng could take her away from her shit father and put her in an apprenticeship and marry a man of her choosing since her hand is now her own to decide since Hua Cheng doesn’t want it.

Option 2) She has to work in Ghost City for 20 years and is married to Yin Yu in name only (because Hua Cheng can’t have a wife at all or he won’t win Gege) then gets pleasantly divorced and giving a severance payment after 20 years.

Option 3) He could decide life is a vague term and after she dies she has to spend 20 years in Ghost City and matchmake a future marriage between her and another ghost.

Option 4) He could decide what she has to do with the next twenty years of her life which could include an actual good marriage and education. Where she has to worship his shrine and be only his devotee for 20 years.

Option 5) He can literally say I’ll collect when I decide and never cash in.

He can do anything because the wording is so fluent and for Hua Cheng debater and Civil God Killer it’s probably easy. He’s not a demon king, he’s a crafty trickster spirit basically a fae lord.

He’s playing the system and he’s winning that’s what Xie Lian figured out and why he supports it. He knows Hua Cheng well enough even back then to trust that he would make the right decision because he believes in Hua Cheng and he’s right too.

#Hua Cheng literally tore out his own eye to spare innocents because of Xie Lian he’s not messing around here #tgcf #tian guan ci fu #hua cheng #xie lian #hualian #heaven official's blessing #tgcf meta #Hualian meta #Hua Cheng meta #heavens official blessing #zee rambles #zees 2am posts

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incorrect-web-novels · 3 months

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Jun Wu: Let's test something: describe your gender in a way that will baffle cis people but other trans and enby peeps will get. Yin Yu: I prefer to not be perceived by others. Qi Rong: Idk pick a slur Xie Lian: I drank too much gender juice i wish i was an abstract concept Lang Qianqiu: Ooblek. My gender is ooblek. Shi Qingxuan: none gender with left boygirl Hua Cheng: A shapeshifting shadow monster that takes the form of your gay aunt's wife Ling Wen: If gender is a performance then mine is the curtains which are drawn in to block stagehands switching props and the backdrop Yushi Huang: I'm a girl in a man way Feng Xin: When you order man from wish Xuan Ji: I'm gender fluid but not in a "sometimes a girl sometimes a boy" way. Sometimes my gender is Wesley from Princess bride, a sexy cowboy, pirate temptress and greasy gamer entity. Mu Qing: an old vending machine that only gives you coffee and lime soda Quan Yizhen: I'm a person Quan Yizhen: i don't know what i'm doing leave me alone Shi Wudu: Booby mcbeardy face Pei Ming: No matter who you are, if you have sex with me, it's gay Jian Lan: "Hi, I'm non-binary. Please refer to me with gender neutral terms." (Source)

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mirageofadesert · 4 months

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Who is the most tragic character Luo Yunxi has portrayed?

#1 Rong Qi from Princess Silver

#2 Runyu from Ashes of Love

#3 Tantai Jin from Till the End of the Moon

#4 Zhou Xiao Shan from Broker

#5 Shangguan Tou from And the Winner is Love

#1 Rong Qui

Crown Prince Rong Qui has suffered from the moment he was born. The only happiness he has ever known was taken from him by the person who should have loved him, but her love was always conditional and the price he had to pay was high. Though he suffered many hardships, his heart remained kind, and this led him to sacrifice not only his happiness, but also his life. The reason I put him first is that even in death, he couldn't rest.

#2 Runyu

Another prince who has suffered since childhood, abused and neglected by his family and betrayed by the people he loved. Runyu grew bitter and vengeful, ultimately costing him everything he held dear. But there is still a chance for redemption.

#3 Tantai Jin

In a familiar pattern, Tantai Jin is another prince who has suffered from birth because he was born as a devil's fetus. The Ancient Devil God had planned a cruel and torturous fate for him that would make him experience all the darkness of human existence. However, the reason I put him in 3rd place is that he is ultimately able to escape this and choose his own fate, freeing himself from all of it all. And because I'm delusional, I think the open ending leaves room for a novel ending!

#4 Zhou Xiao

It's a testament to Luo Yunxi's choice of roles that Zhau Xiao is only number 4, after being blackmailed and oppressed, gaslighted, abused, lied to about his mother's death and his daughter's existence, and finally giving up his life because he couldn't trust the system to take the guy out. On top of that, he was torn between his sister, his child, his ex and his love, ultimately choosing them all over himself.

#5 Shangguan Tou

There are many tragic characters to choose from for my last spot, but I chose Shangguan Tou because he was abandoned by his father, drugged and (almost?) sexually assaulted. On top of that, he falls in love with an immature woman who can't express her feelings very well. A different kind of tragic love story in my opinion (the why-does-he-have-to-fall-for-her kind). The Winner was definitely not love.

Honorable Mentions

Luo Ben from Light Chaser Rescue and Li Zeliang from Lie to Love are not on the list, but they could be. Luo Ben lost his parents, feels guilty about his sisters' medical complications, but therapy could actually save this guy. Li Zeliang lost his father, failed to save someone and instead watched them die; an incident that cost him his leg and his passion. The latest addition to this list is Gu Yunzheng from Love is Panacea, who has severe abandonment issues due to a mother who left him and died, a neglectful father and a dead wife he couldn't save in time. But again, therapy could really work here.

I can't wait to add Chu Wanning from Immortality and Tang Lici from Shui Long Yin to this list! I have a feeling they will make it into my TOP5!

What is your ranking?

#luo yunxi #cdrama #till the end of the moon #shui long yin #and the winner is love #ashes of love #princess silver #罗云熙1227出道十三周年快乐

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mqfx · 6 months

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id love to hear your thoughts on jyl! freudian or otherwise, with however many mentions of soup that you prefer 🥺🤲

just saw this :0 well i wouldn't say that i have many intelligent thoughts about jyl anymore especially since i don't really get the chance to talk about mdzs / cql much so i'm afraid i'll have to disappoint you on this count (which makes me a hypocrite i know)

but i did go insane below this line so watch out!

but i will say again what i said a few weeks back about us (fandom, society--you choose) missing out on a broader richer storytelling experience (?) when we continue to look over women's stories to get to the "more interesting" men because "well the author made more content about them so there's more to work with". not gonna belabor this point bc many have already pointed out that people will come up with all sorts of elaborate headcanons to talk about mr. blorbo who showed up in the back for ten seconds but nary a word to spare for the women who did quite a lot of narrative heavy lifting. did you know that i literally found a fic where wen chao becomes a ghost and gets together with qi rong in the underworld? do you see the same effort given to women with a similar level of narrative importance or prominence?

in this case part of it IS the fault of mxtx; more named men have died in mdzs than there are named women characters in it altogether (and even then, most of those women died too!). let's count:

women: wen qing, granny wen, jiang yanli, yu ziyuan, luo qingyang (mianmian), baoshan sanren, cangse sanren, a-qing, madam jin, jinzhu and yinzhu, meng shi (jgy's mom), qin su (jgy's wife). i bolded the ones who are dead by the end of the series (total: 13 women, 11 of whom are dead)

"important" men who died: wei changze, jiang fengmian, jin guangshan, jin zixuan, jin zixun, jin guangyao, jin rusong (child), su she, wen chao, wen zhuliu, wen ruohan, wen xu, wen ning (came back), song lan, xiao xingchen, xue yang, nie mingjue, wei wuxian (came back), mo xuanyu (total dead: 19, or 17 if you don't count the resurrected, 16 if you don't count the child)

13 total women characters vs let's say 16 dead men. and i'm sure i missed a few (<- nearly forgot xue yang) but who cares right now. what does this say about mxtx's priorities as a writer, or at the very least how women figure in her imagination?

''but charlie! they had a great impact on the narrative!" this is true. without meng shi's suffering there would be no raison d'etre for jin guangyao. without baoshan sanren's teachings there would be no xiao xingchen and song lan's tragedy, and no a-qing means we wouldn't even have known. no cangse sanren means no wei wuxian means no story at all. no wen qing = no core transfer. no jiang yanli = no jin ling, no yunmeng brothers, no heart to tether them from falling off the edge of morality (both have committed heinous acts in war regardless but jiang yanli represents for them why they had to do it. she's their home and their family that they fought to protect--and for what!) i could go on with each one, but my point is that if you take even one of these women out of the story, it all falls apart, right?

so why don't i hear anything about them?

and because you asked and i love you, let's focus on jiang yanli here: WHY is she more often than not excluded or otherwise glossed over in all the myriad discussions about how tragic the yunmeng brothers are? was she not also their sibling, their family? did she not also suffer the war and the near-total wipeout of her sect? the death of her husband? she DID but no one seems to give a shit about her unless it's to fucking call her SOUP as if that's the only thing she did!

no paragaph-long popular elegiac posts on her experiences and the incredible fortitude it might have taken not only to withstand all that but to do so with nothing but forgiveness? (speaking of forgiveness: that she forgive jin zixuan at all? out of unwavering love????) because it's not easy to stay kind in regular real-life conditions let alone what she had to face, on top of which was the daily terror that she might lose the last three people in her family she depended on as a non-powerful woman in a misogynistic society. how much of this was because mxtx couldn't be assed to develop her character, and how much of it is actually because despite what mxtx might have written, most people would not even notice because she's a woman?

the thing with interpreting fictional works or talking about characters is that you can't accurately pinpoint how much of the character was authorial intent, how much is your projection, and how much was a happy accident. what makes the curtains blue? i could just as easily say that "jiang yanli was the strongest character in mdzs because unlike the men who used their pain to justify their descents into crimes, heinous acts, and corruption, she (who had suffered equally or worse) managed to remain steadfast to her principles" as i could "jiang yanli remained static as a character because mxtx couldn't think of a way to develop her, or otherwise didn't give a shit about her role aside from sacrificial lamb for wei wuxian's and jiang cheng's pain".

but we can't even get to those goddamn discussions when people refuse to take her as seriously as they take their fucking war criminal beeboos so i'd be wasting everyone's FUCKING TIME

#hewwo #asks #anonymous #long post #mdzs #and don't get me wrong. i love those beeboos too and i'm not innocent of the ''woobifying some guy'' charges #but i do wish we could talk more about those women. and without fanonizing them into Strong Competent Woman or Mother archetypes

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yumemiruuuu · 4 months

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New Japanese TGCF ending song 😭

“I want to protect everything that you gave me”??? Help???? My heart??????

youtube

I am not okay?? I will never be okay???

youtube

the season 2 dvd drop announcements

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fincalinde · 1 year

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qi rong! i kid, i kid. how about jc.

I will ignore your cruel taunting and focus on my viniferous darling.

a song that reminds me of them

I don't think I have a personal anthem for him, but En Fortapt Bror (A Prodigal Brother) by Rotvelt would probably go on the playlist if I made one, just for this bit alone:

Kan ikke ta det tilbake Kan ikke få du gjort Jeg vil ikke ha tilgivelse Det vil ikke vaske det bort

Can't take it back Can't get you done I don't want forgiveness It won't wash it away

what they smell like

If we're getting poetic, like lotus fragrance and ozone.

an otp

No one in the cast is right for JC but I do think he wants and deserves a suitable wife so I like the idea of reading something where he's in a relationship. His problem is that he needs just, so much therapy before he can make an effective life partner for anyone. He features in this postcanon AU I wrote and that's a reasonable depiction of how I think things could shake out for him after many years have passed if he's worked on himself. Basically, I know his extracanonical list of qualities he requires in a wife is meant to be humorous, but I tried to incorporate them into an OC while also making her a match for him.

I dabbled in reading Sangcheng because I am a slave to @starwife and like, in theory, many many many many many years postcanon who knows what might happen? And mightn't that be interesting? Sadly I have come to the conclusion that it's too much of a stretch and isn't my cup of tea. Pls forgive

a notp

I was racking my brain to think of a JC pairing I kneejerk hate beyond the general 'well, he isn't really compatible with any of the characters we meet' stance and then I realised I had forgotten Xicheng exists. Pause for audience laughter.

What can I even add here? It's based on nothing and it's not even like there's the intelligence of a thoughtful resistant read behind it. The laziest possible pair the spares approach taken by people whose reading comprehension is so poor they think JGY is an irredeemable cackling villain and WWX is a noble woobie. Thankfully it's easy for me to avoid and therefore ironically ends up irritating me less than bad Xiyao in practice.

favorite platonic/familial relationships

I love his relationship with his mother. She's just horrendous to him and I don't think he ever has any concrete evidence she loves him until their final moments together, but what I find most interesting and realistic is that he seems to understand her. He can see why she is who she is, which doesn't in any way mitigate the damage she does but is an important part of their dynamic because it's an element of why he defends her and it contributes to how he internalises her criticisms.

My favourite JC and YZY moment is this:

Jiang Cheng was stuck between his father and his mother. After a moment of hesitation, he moved to his mother’s side. Holding his shoulders, Madam Yu pushed him forward for Jiang FengMian to see, “Sect Leader Jiang, it seems that some things I have to say. Look carefully—this, is your own son, the future head of Lotus Pier. Even if you frown upon him just because I was the one who bore him, his surname is still Jiang! … I don’t believe for one second that you haven’t heard of how the outside people gossips, that Sect Leader Jiang has still not moved on from a certain Sanren though so many years have passed, regarding the son of his old friend as a son of his own; they’re speculating if Wei Ying is your…”

YZY emotionally, verbally and sometimes physically abuses her son. She is failing him as a mother and as a mentor. But she is not failing him as badly as JFM is failing him, and everything she says here is completely correct. And when JC and WWX talk about it afterwards, JC is also correct. WWX and LWJ kill the Xuanwu of Slaughter and no one cares or gives JC credit for his less glamorous contributions. His own father prefers WWX and doesn't even like him, and that is appalling.

WWX means well by trying to gloss over it, but it's an open secret and pretending it's not true is harmful. YZY is also going about it all wrong, but she's the only person who calls JFM out directly for failing his son. Pot, kettle, but there's a reason why when JC is stuck between his parents he ends up going over to his mother's side.

a headcanon that is popular in the fandom but that i disagree with

I'm going to go radical here and say I don't personally enjoy or want to read any postcanon Twin Heroes reconciliation. The novel is pretty final about how things end up for them, and it's my belief that they are both far better off not being in each other's lives any more. It's sad because they were close as brothers and love each other so deeply, but ultimately it's for the best. They both appear to be in agreement about this.

the position they sleep in

Probably looks all super cool and handsome when he sleeps, but unfortunately not quite as super cool and handsome as WWX.

a crossover au i’d love to see them in

Puella Magi Madoka Magica. Can you imagine.

my favorite outfit they’ve ever worn

We all know I'm MDZS first in almost everything, but I'm not a huge fan of JC's hair in the official art. Besides, it cracks me up that JC is far and away the most stylish member of the cast in CQL, and yet there's no indication that it's actually an interest of his. CQL NHS wearing his same basic bitch grey and white yet again while CQL JC swaggers past in his shoulder pads owning the entire world—amazing. How could I pick a favourite? I do like his official photo look though, because the gold looks great with the purple.

#ask #testblog-54 #roquen meta #i am team jc finding some measure of peace #so that he can become his best self #in time to meet a wife who thinks he's the bees knees #and have so many jiang babies #jiang clan revival!#pls he's the only one of my faves who has even a shred of hope left #for possibly being reasonably happy way down the line #let me have this

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nazitty56 · 10 months

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I recently got sucked into the TGCF fandom, and now I have a rabid story bunny on the loose in my head.

It's a reverse role fanfic, but the thing is, almosy every time I reverse a role, a name changes.

Hua Cheng and Xie Lian are reversed (of course)

Hua Cheng's name becomes Xu Hong (since he's part of the Xuli royal family. Original, I know). I realized that Xie Lians's official title, Xianle, doesn't fit Xu Hong, so I had to create a name for him: Ying Guan (Flower Crown -- just a rough translation since Chinese characters have more than one translation per character. Keep that in mind for the other names and titles)

Xie Lian becomes Fang Cheng (Beautiful City), though Ghost City's moniker is Hua Cheng (Flower City). Only people who don't know what it is call it Hua Cheng (sometimes locals will call it that to mess with humans). Fang Cheng is also nicknamed HuaHua by the locals (Hua Chengzhu when they're being really mischievous). They call him that (and the city that) because he's always covered in flowers and wraith butterflies, and the city is covered in flowers as well.

I'm still deciding on how they look.

I made Feng Xin, Xie Lian's maternal cousin. Qi Rong is Xu Hong's assistant (becomes Xuan Zhen when he ascends). Mu Qing is Xu Hong's guard (Nan Yang when he ascends).

He Xuan becomes He Sheng and the Water Master (Shui Shi Sheng). His little sister, He Baihe, becomes the Wind Master (Feng Shi Baihe).

Shi Wudu becomes Xuan Shui (mysterious waters), the equivalent of He Xuan.

Nangong Jie (former Ling Wen), was a female general of Xuli and ascends as Ming Guang Jiangjun after the Xuli rebellion -- that still happens, though Xuli doesn't officially falls until a century later.

Pei Ming was a shoemaker in Xuli, and he ascends as Ling Wen.

As you can tell, the three tumors are already a riot.

The hardest part comes in the form of Jun Wu. His original name (in this fic) is Wu Yong, and he never became a god. His wife, Wu Jianlan, did (goddes of forges -- Lin Long ((fine jade dragon)) ). Her new official title became Long Jun (Prosperous Lord) after she crowned herself as Empress.

I like everything I've made so far, but it's going to be a pain in the ass to write because of how the characters are going to change and thus the circumstances are going to change.

The fun part is when I go to post on AO3 and have to figure out the tagging, lmao. The relationship tags are going to make EVERYONE cringe, I can already tell.

If you guys have any ideas, feel free to add to this!

#tgcf #tgcf reverse fic #writers on tumblr #my writing #this is going to be a disaster #but a good one

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minnarr · 2 months

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ten first lines

tagged by @leenik-geelo and @rainsfalling (thank you!!)

1. There’s a whole group here from Taihu Sect, puffed up in their uniforms. (first sight, word of honor, sort of luo fumeng/zhao jing, 3/4/24)

2. “Don’t move,” Wen Kexing grumbled, pressing humid kisses into Zhou Zishu’s shoulder. (No Shortage of Nights, word of honor, wenzhou, 1/13/2024)

3. “And don’t come back!” Zhang Nianxiang fumed, following it up with a solid kick that sent the last of the boys sprawling onto the street. (The Road Is Never Lonely, gen, 12/31/23)

4. The days of Ye Baiyi’s long seclusion varied little. (Here Comes Trouble, gen, 12/31/23)

5. Someone sat down across from Gao Xiaolian’s desk. (The Demon General's Wife, word of honor, gao xiaolian/gu xiang, 10/27/23)

6. Gu Miaomiao slipped into the room they’d taken at the inn on silent feet. (secret weapon, word of honor, gen, 8/18/23)

7. Siji Manor’s front courtyard was so full of people, Gao Xiaolian almost didn’t recognize it. (take a little time (walk a little line), word of honor, gao xiaolian/ofc (also gxl&deng kuan platonic marriage), 5/26/23)

8. Somewhere outside, the sun still shines. (Carve Out My Heart, word of honor, yue feng'er/rong xuan but primarily horror, 5/1/23)

9. Ye Baiyi came into the house on Mount Changming like a stormcloud. (take a look at what we've made, word of honor, rong changqing/ye baiyi, 4/5/23)

10. Zhou Zishu had been spending a lot of time outside his own house the past few weeks. (sample of one, qi ye, wu xi & zhou zishu platonic kissing with bg wu xi/jing beiyuan, 4/5/23)

what I've learned is that I need to write fewer first lines about people's status vis a vis being inside places, and also carve out my heart is still a banger

tagging (no pressure) @orchisailsa @antique-forvalaka @monsterbookworm @stifledlaughterao3

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bookofjin · 11 months

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Biography of Xue Cheng (ZS38)

[He grew up in the south but later moved north, and served Houmochen Yue and then Yuwen Tai and the court at Chang'an.

Also a quite involved description of Emperor Wen of Western Wei's tipping vessels.]

Xue Cheng, courtesy name Jingyou, was a native of Fenyin in Hedong. His great grandfather Hongchang on encountering the chaos of Helian led his kinsmen to move away to Xiangyang. Cheng mourned his father at a young age. The family was impoverished and he personally ploughed [the fields] to support his grandmother, [but] if he had some leisure time, he read writings and records. At the time people were not yet amazed by him.

When Outside the Jiang [i.e. the southern realm] selected people, they very much considered families with generations [of service]. Cheng, since he was a migrated lodger, was not being picked up and employed. However, he relied on his talent to show his spirit, and not once chased after the gates of those with generations of benefice.

The Commander of the Central Gentlemen of the Left, Wei Qiandu of Jingzhao, spoke to Cheng, saying:

My lord's gates and lands are not inferior, and [your] personal talent is not lacking. Why does not Cheng rely on frequent visits to the personnel section?

Cheng said:

“Those with generations of birthright climb to high positions, the gallant and capable sink downto lowly companions.” The ancients considered it lamentable. [I] take the liberty of not yet being able to do it.

Qiandu announced to people, saying:

This one is young in years [but] extremely desolate and defiant. It is only that he has not come across the [right] time, and that is all.

Middle of Xiaochang [525 – 528], he took his staff and switch and returned to Luoyang. Before this, Cheng's granduncle Zhendu, together with his clansman Andu, took hold of Xu and Yan, and reverted to Wei. His son Huaijun saw Cheng, and they very much became friendly and on good terms with each other.

During Erzho Rong's deposing and installing [the emperor], he thereupon turned back to Hedong and halted at Huaijun's house. He did not interact with human beings, but the whole day read books, copied and summarized them in his own hands, having in hand two hundred scrolls. Indeed, the commandery warden, Yuan Xi, had at the time been inviting and soliciting him, treating him with equal courtesy. Huaijun always said:

You have returned to your home village, but do not make designs for producing a legacy, and do not assent to take a wife. Do [you] intend to go south again?

Cheng likewise contentedly secluded himself and did not change his habits. Middle of Putai [531 AD], he was designated Servant in Affairs-at-Centre, concurrently General who Cowes the Waves.

When Shenwu of Qi raised troops, Cheng then went east to roam within Chen and Liang. He spoke to his clansman Xiaotong, saying:

Gao Huan depends on troops to infringe on the Sovereign. Destruction and chaos will soon begin. Guanzhong is a land of superlative shape, surely there will be a hegemon king living there.

Therefore he and Xiaotong travelled together to Chang'an. Hoomochen Yue¤ heard about him, and summoned him to be Gentleman-at-Centre to the Acting Tribunal, with appointment as General who Quells the Distant and Colonel of Infantry. When Yue¤ murdered Heba Yue, all the people of the army congratulated and encourage each other. Cheng alone spoke to those close to him, saying:

Yue¤'s talents and strategies are basically few, and he wilfully murdered a good general. In the affairs of defeat and destruction, his then are not far off. We now forthwith will be made prisoners, what is there to congratulate and encourage!

Those who heard considered Cheng's words to be true, and therefore had a troubled appearance. Soon after Taziu pacified Yue¤, he pulled in Cheng to be Army Advisor of the Records Chamber.

When Xiaowu of Wei moved west, he was granted General who Conquers the Villains and Central Unassigned Grandee, and ennobled Baron of Xiayang county with an estate of 200 households. When Emperor Wen of Wei was enthroned, he was designated Attendant Gentleman of the Palace Writers, promoted General who Calms the East, got added to this estate 100 households, and advanced in feudal rank to be an Earl.

4th Year of Datong [538 AD], the Xuanguang [“Spreading Brillaince”] and Qinghui [“Pure Beauty”?] Halls were completed, and Cheng made a hymn for them. Emperor Wen of Wei also built two tipping vessels.

One of them had two transcendents who together held a single alms bow and placed together on a single plate. On the bowl lid there was a mountain, and the mountain had a fragrant air. One transcendent also held a metal pitcher which overlooked the top of the vessel. By using water to pour on the mountain, which then set out out into the pitcher and then gushed into the vessel, smoke and steam passed through and issued from within the mountain. It was spoken of as the Transcendent Tipping Vessel.

One of them had two lotus leaves [?] placed together on a single plate, their distance from each other a full chi, and in the middle of them there was a lotus seed hanging down above the vessel [?]. By using water to gush onto the leaves, which then set out onto the seed and flowed into the vessel. There were wild ducks and toads as decorations on it. It was spoken of as the Water Lily Tipping Vessel.

The two plates were each placed on a single couch, the bowl was round but the couch was square. In the middle there was a person, the image of telling the Three Qualities. Everything was set up in front of the Qinghui Hall. The vessels' shape resembled gong觥 pitchers but square. If they were full, they were level, and if overflown, they tipped over. Cheng made a hymn for each of them.

Beginning of Datong [535 – 551], the ceremonial regulations had many shortcomings. Taizu made Cheng, together with Lu Bian, Tan Zhu, and others assist in settling them. He himself, due to the roaming and partings in generations past, did not listen to tones or music. Even in secluded rooms and solitary places, he regularly had an anxious appearance. Later he was incriminated in an affair and died. His son Shu inherited. His office reached Lower Grandee of the Ritual Section, Ceremonies Similar Great General, and Diplomatic Envoy Deputy.

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