#wwx is not oblivious

[glitteringmoonlight]

In my time in the MDZS fandom, I’ve seen people use Wei Wuxian dismissing the bathtub scene with “it’s normal for men to be like this sometimes” as evidence that he’s oblivious, but none of it ever takes into account the context of that dialogue.

First off, the quote from Chapter 96 is this:

Wei WuXian only put on one boot before continuing, “But you don’t have to feel too apologetic either. Uh, it’s normal for men to be like this sometimes. Please...don’t take it too seriously.”

Here’s the thing: Wei Wuxian doesn’t truly believe what he’s saying here! He’s saying what he thinks he needs to say to salvage their friendship! He thinks his confession has just been rejected and that he’s provoked Lan Wangji into doing something that he didn’t really want to do

[Side note, I’m using the ExR translation (with the exception of one scene, where I use multiple translations) because at the time this post was begun, it was the only fully translated version of these chapters I could find]

The sequence of events are as follows:

1. Wei Wuxian tries to express his feelings 

Wei WuXian, “I have to tell you something.” He breathed lightly before speaking, “Lan Zhan, thank you.”

With thousands of words, there was nowhere to start. If he didn’t meet Lan WangJi when he came back, Wei WuXian didn’t know what he’d be like right now. In reality, even if he roamed around alone, it wouldn’t necessarily be that bad. But no matter what, he believed that nothing would be better than this.

Unfortunately, he didn’t notice that after Lan WangJi heard this, his body froze slightly. 

The surging heat finally began to retreat. Wei WuXian’s head was still dizzy as he rambled on, “In these two lives, you’ve helped me a lot. I know you’re... really nice to me. You’re really great! Apart from thank you, I don’t know what else to say to you... Anyways, towards you, I feel... I feel...”

He’s trying so hard to convey his feelings that he doesn’t realize that as soon as Lan Wangji hears the words ‘thank you’, he thinks Wei Wuxian slept with him out of gratitude. So on one hand, we have Wei Wuxian sincerely trying to confess his feelings, while on the other hand, Lan Wangji believes that Wei Wuxian only slept with him because he feels grateful to him, not because he actually wanted to. That leads to,

2. Lan Wangji pushes Wei Wuxian away

But this wasn’t the point at all. Wei WuXian had never confessed like this to anyone before. Even someone whose face was as thick as his felt a bit embarrassed. He could only first pick a few random things to say. Just as he was thinking how to explain himself to make it sound sincere and serious when Lan WangJi suddenly pushed him away.

Now, we as readers know the reason for Lan Wangji pushing Wei Wuxian away, but Wei Wuxian doesn’t. Wei Wuxian is yet to realize that Lan Wangji has a thing about being thanked. That realization only happens later, in Chapter 111.

Wei WuXian looked at him, “Lan Zhan, you’re really scared of me telling you ‘thank you’, aren’t you? I suddenly remembered. Many of the times we parted ways in my past life, I said ‘thank you’ to you right before. And every time we separated, I worsened the next time we met.”

The time they killed Wen Chao and Wen ZhuLiu at the courier station, the time they met each other through the flowers at the tower in Yunmeng, the time they parted at Yiling’s Burial Mound. Every time, he used the word to mark a clear line between him and Lan WangJi, stretching out the distance between them.

With a long while of silence, Lan WangJi replied, “Between you and me, there is no need for ‘thank you’ and ‘sorry’.”

At this point, to Wei Wuxian, the only reasonable conclusion to make about Lan Wangji pushing him aside when he’s trying to confess his feelings is that Lan Wangji doesn’t return his feelings. Worse, that he has taken advantage of a drunk Lan Wangji. (Many people have already pointed out that Lan Wangji has already sobered up by the time they have sex, but again, Wei Wuxian doesn’t know that!) 

This is Wei Wuxian’s immediate reaction.

Although Wei WuXian didn’t know when he woke up, now that he was awake, Lan WangJi’s reaction meant that one thing was clear: he didn’t want to continue what they were doing. He didn’t want to listen to Wei WuXian finish what he was saying, either.

A little later, he thinks

That the most disciplined person would throw tantrums, hit people, mess about after he was drunk, meant that Lan WangJi’s drunken actions weren’t self-controlled. And, even though Wei WuXian knew this, he still took advantage of the easy manipulation, purposely provoking him and leading him to do what he wanted. 

[...]

This situation clearly verified the worst possibility. Lan WangJi was indeed very nice towards him, but... it probably wasn’t the kind of nice he hoped for.

He already knows and acknowledges that Lan Wangji treats him in a special way! In fact, he was hoping that it meant Lan Wangji reciprocated his feelings, but he didn’t know for sure. The fact that Lan Wangji pushes him away when he starts to confess solidifies for him that Lan Wangji does not reciprocate his feelings. Which finally leads to

3. Wei Wuxian apologizes for taking advantage of Lan Wangji and tries to reassure him by saying ‘it’s normal for men to be like this sometimes’

It’s made clear that Wei Wuxian is trying to assure Lan Wangji that it’s normal because he doesn’t want his feelings (that he believes are not reciprocated) to ruin their friendship.

Originally, Wei WuXian thought that compared to having his feelings be found out and them become so awkward they couldn’t even be friends, he’d much rather have Lan WangJi feel that he was a cheap, flippant person instead. But right now, he began to regret saying those idiotic things without thinking about them first. He whispered, “... I’m sorry.”

The text literally specifies that he says what he says because he thought it would be better for Lan Wangji to think that he was a “cheap and flippant person” than ruin their friendship! He does not actually believe what he’s saying! That’s also why Wei Wuxian’s confession in the Guanyin Temple begins with “Back then, I really wanted to sleep with you”. 

For more clarity, this line has also been translated as

He had only said it as an offhanded comment, but unexpectedly, Wei Wuxian came to the realization: "You're not wrong."

"Lan Zhan! Lan Wangji! Hanguang-jun! I—Earlier I—slept with you because I genuinely wanted to!"

  — spicychickenyang’s translation

and

He had only been thinking out loud. Little did he expect Wei WuXian to suddenly go, “You’re right.”

With that, Wei WuXian proceeded to shout at the top of his lungs, “Lan Zhan! Lan WangJi! Earlier, I—I truly wanted to sleep with you!”

  — Chapter 100, boat-full-of-lotus-pods translation

 Now that Lan Xichen’s monologue has revealed that Lan Wangji does return his feelings (and probably because he has been able to connect all the times he said ‘thank you’ to Lan Wangji with negative reactions from Lan Wangji), Wei Wuxian immediately figures out why Lan Wangji reacted the way he did and clarifies it.

#mdzs #mo dao zu shi #wangxian #wwx is not oblivious #wwx does not actually believe he has no feelings for lwj after they have sex #it is precisely /because/ he does have feelings for lwj and knows it #(and believes that lwj does not reciprocate) #that he says what he does

[factsilike]

Wei Wuxian Is Not Oblivious - Rynne - 魔道祖师 - 墨香铜臭 | Módào Zǔshī - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù [Archive of Our Own]

Something that needs to be said to dispel the commonly accepted fanon 'WWX is oblivious or stupid. '

This post explains all too clearly why he is not.

#mdzs #wwx is not oblivious #for the love of god read the book #wei wuxian #lan wangji #mdzs meta

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

There is a platonic explanation for all this. Right?

[First] Prev <–-> Next

#poorly drawn mdzs #mdzs #wei wuxian #lan wangji #[accidental kiss] is a purposeful misspelling to reference an old meme. I will blast anyone who tries to correct me with the crunchiest png #The kiss looks like wwx is biting lwj's cheek....It *does* have the consistency of a soft marshmallow so he's not in the wrong. #Once again: wwx was never *ever* oblivious to the implications of the situation. On the contrary: this entire scene + the prior shows- #that he very much understands that this looks gay to the viewers. #He just doesn't think its possible to be loved like that. *Especially not by Lan Zhan.* #Do people forget that LWJ had 13 years to process his feelings VS WWX's (give or take) week? #This is the moment he realizes wwx has feelings and he HATES HIMSELF FOR IT. He feels like he's betraying lwj's trust! #The demi feeling of having spent so long in a comfortable platonic relationship and then getting struck by the 'oh shit' moment. #Its not a soft 'Oh' - Its a 'Oh god they are going to hate me and I can't bear that. I need to be so normal about this or else'. #Pour one out for all of us who've had to go through the trials of trying to conceal the painful realization of deeper affections. #Anyway. *both* lwj and wwx fall in love kicking and screaming and miserable and clawing at the walls about it. #Continuity acknowledgement: wwx's hands are unbound at this point but I had a hellish time with blocking and this was a bit easier.

[theineffableoystercatcher]

Wei Wuxian: I’m this close to falling in love with Lan Zhan.

Jiang Cheng: Your fingertips are touching.

Wei Wuxian: Exactly.

#mdzs #wangxian #wei wuxian #jiang cheng #incorrect mdzs #incorrect quotes #the untamed #mdzs incorrect quotes #cql #incorrect cql #the rare alternate universe in which wwx isn’t the most oblivious bisexual ever

[unfamd]

look i just think that lwj should get to be as petty and mean and sublimely, perfectly dickish to jiang cheng as he wants, preferably in front of witnesses and with immense prejudice. say what you want about post-canon yunmeng shuangjie and their relationship but you can't tell me lwj would ever forgive jc even if he and wwx repair all their problems and get back to something approaching their relationship pre-war. there's no way lwj wouldn't make every lan clan gathering jiang cheng attends Actual Living Hell for the man with all the pointed subtlety that being Diplomatic 4D Chess Player Lan Xichen's brother has given him. jiang cheng cries multiple times every visit, and not even for nostalgic missing-the-good-times reasons. even the lan juniors feel sorry for him. lan jingyi once asked lwj if he thought he'd gone just a little too far when he told jiang cheng that there was a nice area up in the hills for sword practicing that 'had a good cliff edge he could use'. jiang cheng has never wished to die so many times in one visit. lwj would love to help him with that request, if the opportunity arose

#the untamed #mdzs #wangxian #lan wangji #jiang cheng #wei wuxian #cql #meanwhile wwx is sublimely oblivious to Everything #wwx: it's so nice now that jiang cheng has forgiven me for letting him murder me that time! #lwj (restrained but seething rage at a nuclear level): i hope he chokes on his soup and i get to watch the light leave his eyes #unfamd originals

[layzeal]

i absolutely eat it UP that one of the reasons wwx is so hesitant to believe lwj has feelings for him is that he can't tell if lwj treats him with so much goodness and kindness because he's simply that good of a person or if there's ~something more to it~

and!! here's what gets me: he's 100% right to question that. because from all we know, lan wangji would still have protected and done everything he did even if he wasn't in love with wwx. it all comes down to his beliefs, and standing up to them by protecting him. wwx is afraid to jump to conclusions because his fears are genuinely very well based!

#seriously take a shot everytime wwx muses about how good of a person lwj is #even at their worst moments wwx still held a tremendous amount of respect for him #he's under the belief that lwj is doing this not bc he's in love but because he believes in him #and he's not wrong! lwj's love isnt shown through the grand gestures! but through the small quiet ones #would lwj still protect wwx if he didn't have feelings for him? yes #would lwj have drank alcohol and eaten spicy food and kept the rabbits he gave him? nope #and wwx slowly comes to realize this!! it just takes him time and getting to know lwj better!!! #AND IT'S SO GOOD AUGHHHH i just love their love story #i love the grandiose acts among the many quiet ''i love you's'' #anyways y'all know it already but this is a ''wwx is oblivious to lwj's feelings'' hatehouse #he's not oblivious fandom just hates a well written slow-burn love story #modao #lace speaks

[seethefakemuses]

jiang cheng’s expression wasn’t described as “vengeful wrath, fathomless hatred, or raging ecstasy” for ppl to be so boring abt it.

#how did anyone get through this novel without seeing the fucking intensity of chengxian’s relationship is beyond me #yeah wwx’s oblivious but i didn’t expect the entire fandom to be the same #also adds onto my earlier point abt ppl being boring + flattening his rship with wwx down to hatred or some other emotion #the point is that they can’t be boiled down they’ve got so much shit between them it can’t be compressed #they love each other they loathe each other they couldn’t live without the other they need the other to be alive to feel alive themselves #jiang cheng #wei wuxian #chengxian #mdzs

[queseraphita]

wangxian just kinda fucks me up on the relatability of one half being so rational about reality that you logic your way out of vulnerability while the other half feels so intensely it scares yourself with fear of what could happen but end up missing the opportunities of what could be

#wangxian #mdzs #i feel alot of these things for those two and how theyre relationship comes together after so long #i really hate the wwx is oblivious trope bc no hes not #i know i can be oblivious but other times you just cant conceive of the idea that the impact you have on ppl is there at all #mikh talks #sometimes you dont even realize its an option you can have at all in your situation...

[ninjakk]

When you see someone talking about how novel WWX didn't develop feelings for LWJ as early on as cql WWX... And novel WWX is an oblivious idiot 😬 Not a new argument.. but what the hell?!

Firstly, how can he be BOTH?! He either developed feelings for LWJ and is "oblivious" OR he "didn't have feelings for LWJ" until his second life or when you deem him to do so. Make your mind up! Both are wrong, but at least stick to one!

Even if you're inept at reading subtext or just "oblivious" yourself and can't see WWX's rather apparent infatuation with LWJ right from the very first time they met (which even JC can see to a certain extent!) - WWX literally confesses later in the novel (and extras!) that in hindsight, he now knows he had a huge crush on LWJ from the beginning. There are a number of reasons WWX doesn't fully acknowledge his feelings towards LWJ in his first life and quite frankly, being oblivious is NOT one of them.

The irony that these people are in fact the oblivious ones does not escape me... 🙄😤

#mdzs #mo dao zu shi #wangxian #mdzs novel #wwx is NOT oblivious... YOU are! #wwx had feelings for lwj from the start #banging my head against a brick wall

[incorrect-web-novels]

I really enjoy criticizing media, but I need you to know that stories like Scum Villain, DPA, and other "cringe" novels are actually SUPER good - so good that it's a lot of fun to deconstruct and joke about them. Same with characters I tease or make fun of - we're psychically connected

[Image ID - a photo of a woman putting a box on a high shelf while an upset child looks at her. The box is labeled, "my favorite characters and stories." The woman is labeled, "Me, who criticizes them constantly." The pouting child is labeled, "Ppl who actually hate/misunderstand the story/character (and are dicks about it)." End ID]

#not a quote #svsss #dpa #the demon prince goes to the academy #this goes for wwx too btw. I like to joke about how oblivious and sporatic he is but I'm usually exaggerating lol #part of the fun of a fandom is making jokes about characters but sometimes ppl take them seriously 😳 #memes #my memes #my posts #(tho the wwx comparison is not really that important since most ppl do like him. it's more about those ppl who are like: ... #....y'all are so stupid and dumb for mischaracterizing wwx 🙄) #(BESTIE IT IS A JOKE. and even if it wasn't stop being mean. part of stories is to enjoy them it doesn’t matter how)

[wwxisveryoblivious]

Oblivious Xian Xian

#mdzs novel #mdzsedit #mdzs wwx #mdzs wei ying #mdzs wei wuxian #mo dao zu shi #the grandmaster of demonic cultivation #grandmaster of demonic cultivation #the grandmaster of diabolism #grandmaster of demonic arts #wei wuxian #oblivious #wangxian #pining #jiang wanyin #jiang yanli #jiang cheng #twitter

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Dishonourable Demonstration

[First] Prev <–-> Next

#poorly drawn mdzs #mdzs #wei wuxian #lan wangji #ouyang zizhen #jin ling #lan jingyi #lan sizhui #nameless red disciple #Ended up scraping the tying up scene because this episode was getting bloated #There are a lot of fun scenes I will be covering though! #All the juniors in the room *know* what's going on here and have to just be polite about it. #Even if they don't know the exact tradition of the ribbon they can extrapolate the intent. #WWX just got dragged into the room like a bunny in a snare and shown off like a fine prize. There is very little room for doubt. #Remember when I said the juniors seeing HGJ so love struck was like seeing your principal ling on the desk twirling the phone cord? #yeah this is like: The principal has set up a full wedding reception in his office. You are there for detention. #He is asking your opinion on napkin colours and if the neckline on his dress is too low or not low enough. #Once again...poor wwx is the last to know. (Not really - he's aware that this is a social faux pas and is trying very hard to keep- #lwj's social face in tact. He's not oblivious! He just doesn't think this has anything to do with *him* specifically)

[thewhitehairedwitchgirl]

Something that frustrates me about fanon and fan interpretation of characters is when the audience insists that a character is so dumb and oblivious. Bestie you are reading a romance told in 3rd person omniscient with enough random misunderstandings and dramatically inconvenient twists to make a telenovela jealous. Is the character actually dense or are you just conflating your knowledge of genre conventions/tropes with the character's in-universe awareness?

#this is mostly about wangxian. im tired of fics saying wwx is dumb and oblivious #as if lwj was sooo obvious. u can tell he likes wwx sooo much by the way he barely speaks #enough w the whole 'wwx is the only person who doesn't know' literally no one knew #except maybe lxc #butterflies ranting #wangxian #mo dao zu shi #the untamed

[hackauthorairplane]

i had the funniest fucking dream where for whatever reason jiang cheng was arranged to be married to lan wangji and in this dream wwx is in denial about his feelings for lwj! so hes being over the top positive like omg jc! you hit the jackpot! youre getting the perfect husband!!! *his heart is hurting*

so 30 minutes before the wedding jc just fucking bolts and attempts to escape, running as fast as he can (only in his underwear for whatever reason)

and wwx sees him and runs after him and hes so much fucking faster than jc and catches him with ease

like this dream was in jc's pov of him huffing and puffing, running his ass off out of the building hes supposed to be getting ready in..and then his fucking shixiong appears out of nowhere and is effortlessly running twice as fast

the dream ended with jc being like its okay if youre gay man but im not!!!

#mdzs #jc #wwx #z #jc was a straight trans dude in the dream #trying to explain that not everyone is into dudes to his oblivious gay brother

[theballadofmars]

HOLLOW KNIGHT AU - PART 14

This au is just me trying to draw one scene and discovering that I actually need to draw ANOTHER SCENE BEFORE so it just makes more sense. In this case, I realized that Hornet shoul already be in the story, and I had Mian Mian’s design ready so: HERE IT IS!!!

I chose her as hornet because: 1) Same pink aesthetic 2) I really like when stories have mm and wwx being friends and 3) I really like mm and she deserves it

Her story is not exactly the same as in the game, but she’s ready to kick asses and take some names!! And train with wwx because lwj gets, aham, districted during their fights. 

PART 13 <-- PART 14 --> PART 15

[PART 1]

#mian mian #mm and wwx being friends #also you know the you like mm scene is coming #mm: these bitches are gay #good for them #wwx is oblivious at lwj crush #lwj is still in denial about his crush #mdzs #the untamed #wangxian #hollow knight #hollow knight au #happy because i think i developed my abilities a lot #look at those fights!! #aren't the best but still happy about those panels #mxtx au #wei wuxian #wei ying #tgcf #svsss

[lesbian4lqg]

one thing i really appreciate about svsss is that with anyone else in shen yuans role?

the system's lbh mood ring points (satisfaction, heartbreak, etc) would be considered an invasion of privacy more than the whole transmigration thing already is or at least a source of valuable insight but instead

its shen yuan. if anything the mood ring reveals make him more confused

#(wiping away tears) hes so stupid #no but really the ways in which mxtx crafts her narration to share info with/withhold info from her audience is SO fascinating #*are #and to do it w/out breaking suspension of disbelief! shes so talented! #like theres so many examples! #the systems mood ring points making many of lbhs feelings/motivations obvious #(or at least comprehensive enough to be follow-able) #to the audience while still portraying sy's obliviousness as genuine and understandable #all of the hints as to hua chengs identity that make you think youve figured it out long before xie lian only to discover that #1. hes known for ages and just didnt mention it even tho HES LITERALLY THE NARRATOR? #2. we as the audience arent even told when he figured it out. we find out that he knows at the same time hua cheng does #(<- this also happens a bit w nan feng and fu yao. we Know but does xie lian know? yes he just doesnt care.) #its like the jkr 'it wasnt mentioned bc it wasnt relevant to harrys story' thing but CLEVER AND TRUE AND ON PURPOSE #i havent read mdzs yet but based on what ive seen & on cql a similar thing is done w wwx&lwj solving a murder mystery #theyre revealing what happened while wwx was dead to the cultivation world and the audience but also much of what happened when he was alive #(tho most of what happened when he was alive the first time is only revealed to the audience) #like i know mxtx is hardly the first author to do this but like. i just enjoy it so much? #anyway thats all i love her #shen yuan #shen qingqiu #svsss #tgcf #cql #mdzs #mxtx #✌️