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#Yan Wushi. Yan Wushi is all three of them
distort-opia · 2 months
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Op, since you seems to like mdzs (idk if you like others mxtx novels), then do you like other chineses novels?
[hands shaking over the keyboard] Ha. Do I like other Chinese novels, you ask... I am literally in Chinese novel hell right now, because I just finished reading all official translations of 2HA and foaming at the mouth.
I've been reading Chinese novels for a long time (and watching Asian dramas of all kinds, and reading manga/manhua/webtoons). I'm not even sure what I started with when it comes to Chinese novels, but I'm pretty sure it was something by Priest... either Guardian (Zhen Yun) or Silent Reading (Mo Du). Then I rampaged through all three big MXTX novels, all before The Untamed even came out. The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation (Mo Dao Zu Shi, or MDZS) is definitely my favorite; I would raze the earth for Wei Wuxian, much like poor Lan Zhan.
I'd have many good novels to recommend, but this answer would end up incredibly long if I reviewed them. Here's some of the ones I liked most:
Peerless by Meng Xi Shi
Remnants of Filth by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou (Meatbun)
The Dumb Husky and His White Cat Shizun by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou (Meatbun)
Mist by Wei Feng Ji Xu
Little Mushroom by Shisi
However, if we're talking about personal favorites that I've read more than once, besides MDZS... it's definitely Thousand Autumns (Qian Qiu) by Meng Xi Shi. I've never found a novel with a dynamic that is so... distilled Psychopath & Autistic, and why these kinds of personalities can work together-- despite it being perceived as toxic. Yan Wushi is a horrible, horrible old man and I want to affectionately invent new ways of torture for him. The plot is basically him (leader of a demonic sect) trying to break and corrupt Shen Qiao (the leader of the most revered sect who had recently gotten betrayed and lost everything). It's literally Yan Wushi constantly going "Don't you ever wanna go feral, don't you wanna go apeshit??" while Shen Qiao just refuses to go evil. But the immovable object falls in love with the unstoppable force despite all the horrid shit thrown his way. And then the unstoppable force also falls in love with the immovable object.
What are some of your favorites though? I'm always open to recs... as I restrain myself from hunting down the last volume of 2HA online and wait for the official translation from Seven Seas to come out :)
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tonyglowheart · 24 days
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for qian qiu, what are ur top 5 favorite Funniest lines of dialogue from yan wushi
cinco?? en esta economia?? joking aside my brain does Not have five I don't think lmao let's see how many I can come up with
Numero Uno has has HAS to be of course Extra 10
YWS: we've already been intimate, if we were a man and woman then you'd have to take me in marriage" SQ: wait! why am I the one taking you in marriage? YWS: oh? you want to be given away in marriage? SQ: uh naturally not.... YWS: (Look,) This venerable one likes you and doesn't care about appearances, if you want to take me in marriage, it's naturally no matter to me; in order to prevent third parties from wagging their tongues and making irresponsible comments about you, the lofty and proper Xuandu Mtn Sect Leader, I'm left with no reputation to speak of, but for you, whatever unfair treatments (against me) can't be considered unfair treatment. [These words sounded arrogant, yet somehow also had a thread of unfair treatment.] SQ, :'): That's not what I meant. YWS: So are you gonna take responsibility or not? or? SQ: .... SQ: ...... SQ: ..take responsibility....
honestly queen shit. snap snap you go girlboss.
My second moment is a Xie Ling moment but like it's so funny to me that he demanded the sugar figure of Shen Qiao but then immediately bit its fuckin head off.
Third is sort of a combo cuz he does it indirectly in the novel (okay fine, rather I suppose Yu Shengyan is the one who does it in the novel) but in the donghua they have him do it lol (thank you donghua crew) - yes I'm talking about him #gaslighting Shen Qiao in the beginning. Declaring with his whole chest, not just the line from the novel about SQ being a disciple of Huanyue Sect, but that I am your Shizun. Yan Wushi. Honestly that was so sexy of him.
and that's all I got lmao, I'd probably have to reread and like take notes on specific quotes to get more than that lol. but like also in general, he is just so Iconic in all that he does. but these three are like. 'tis peaks milord.
edit: I FORGOR ALSO WHEN. YWS. BORROWED SHANHE TONGBEI TO SCALE THE FISH AND PLUCK THE BIRD this is not specific dialogue I'm sure there are lines there but like this is such a Moment. also sorry yws but I agree with SQ on the bird thing lol like, wth. using a knife is THE worst way you could do it, you gotta boil up some water and blanch the bird and then manually pluck the feathers out. if you use a knife one it's a pain in the ass two it's inefficient three you're just gonna be cutting the feathers probably (I'm assuming the sword is sharp enough to cut them)-- then you're just gonna have cut off feather quill ends all over the bird. no good.
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thousand autumns donghua, episode 13~
(i have been warned in advance that this one is gonna HURT. so. brace urselves, gentle tumblrinas 😩)
kid: how come i've got to fetch water?? MAKE SHIWU DO IT! D:<
shifu: *WHACK* i may not have a shillelagh but i HAVE GOT A HORSETAIL WHISK. GO, CHILD. DO CHORES!!
ohhh poor sweet shiwu ;A; he volunteers to help anyway ;A; what a good lad!! DOn'T TAKE HIM FROM ME 😭😭
shen qiao: *is unconscious in front of the temple*
the kids (in skyrim child's voice): AH!! DEAD BODY!!! DDD:
sang jingxing: how dare shen qiao hurt me. I AM HURT. I AM HURT BY SHEN QIAO TRYING TO STOP ME FROM KILLING AND EATING HIM. >:(
awwww now shiwu is looking after shen qiao ;A; he's so SWEET, he's such a kind and gentle babby ;A;
OH NOES!!! SHEN QIAO'S MERIDIANS ARE BROKEN!?! HE CAN'T DO MARTIAL ARTS???!!! BUT HE HAS LITERALLY NO OTHER SKILLS (that we know of)!!!!
ashdodsdaisji shifu is strict!! but shiwu goes 'even if u've got a sharp tongue, i know ur a good man, shifu! :D' and now shifu can't say shit when shiwu asks him to heal shen qiao!!!! well played, u clever babby, well played indeed!!! 🤣
yan wushi: lol u better pray for urself shen qiao. like call an ambulance but not for me >:D
shen qiao: *goes thru a magical girl transformation in his sleep*
shen qiao: that was weird :)
OH!!! HIS MERIDIANS ARE FIXED??? HIS DANTIAN IS HEALING?? HE CAN SEE??????
yan wushi (in his memories): lol let's uhhhh dual cultivate >;D >;D >;D
shen qiao (waking up): *BAAAARRRRFFFFF*
uh-oh
OH NO CHUYI
CHUYI NOOOO BE QUIET, CHILD!!! RUN, CHILD!!! RUN!!!
'xiao daoshi' this guy definitely drives a white van in the modern au version of this story 😒
NO DON'T HURT THE BABY!!! LET HIM GO U TWAT!!! ;A;
oh it's the weirdo with the fan made of knives!! lol i didn't recognise u with a child suspended in front of ur face as a hostage 😊
knife-fan guy: if u don't bring shen qiao here within two hours i will kill EVERY PRIEST HERE!! >:)
all three of them?? ok lol
……….i am bluffing pls do not kill them one is old and two are baby pls do NOT KILL THEM ;A;
shifu: well, that kid's dead. hehuan sect will kill everyone anyway, so i'll go die and u take care of my other student, k?
shen qiao: :) ??? :)
awww he froze shen qiao in place bc he knew shen qiao was gonna throw himself in front of them ;A;
HE PAT SHIWU ON THE HEAD GOOD-BYE
SHIFU NO
SHIFU DON'T DO IT
SHIFU NOOOOOOOO
knife-fan guy: wow too bad i have to kill this cute kid lol >:) i would have preferred to kill shen qiao but this is fine too >:)
shifu entering the scene like a character from a shakespeare play: 'it's dark!! who has disturbed my dream??'
and verily shifu did appear and try to make the blackguard spare his young squire the noose!! alas, the cruel knave believed him not, when shifu swore he did not know shen qiao, the one the blackguard sought; and so, in blood-soaked rage did he—AHEM ANYWAY
AHHH, XIAO SE!! that was his name. xiao se, bai rong, and yan shou!!! they are all the hehuan sect clowns, they who use children as human shields!! (except bai rong 😘)
awww poor shifu ;A; he knows his odds are bad but he's still trying to protecc shen qiao and save his boy ;A;
holy shit shifu is badass!!! GET EM SHIFU
uhhhh they're not gonna make me watch the kid die, are they?? are they???
zhu lengquan is shifu's name!!! nice to meet u sir!! im just gonna call u shifu tho. bc i have a feeling i won't be able to call u anything for very much longer ;A;
OH NO
OHHH NOOOOOOOO
CHUYI
CHUYIIIIIII NOOOOOOOOOOOO
THEY
THEY MADE ME WATCH
THEY MADE ME WATCH THE CHILD DIE
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
AWWW SHIFU YELLED HIS NAME!! HE IS HEARTBROKEN OMG
damn shifu is cool!! he's fighting so hard on chuyi's behalf ;A; he even SPITS on the murderer!! bc he's a BADASS MOTHERFUCKER!!!! U GO KING!!!
SHIFUUUUUU
SHIFUUUU NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!
'even if i knew who he was, i wouldn't tell u bc u killed my disciple!! KILL ME FIRST'
and then they did ;A;
SCREW U LOT!!! SHIFU AND CHUYI WERE GOOD GUYS AND THEY DESERVED THE WORLD ;A;
NOOOOOOO SHIWU AND SHEN QIAO ARE CRYINGGGGG
FCK IM CRYING TOO
NOOOOOOOO MY BABIESSSSS
bai rong don't betray them. BAI RONG DON'T BETRAY THEM
awww THANK U BAI RONG!! UR THE BEST BAI RONG ;A;
she's just!! SO GREAT ;A; THANK U BBYGIRLLLLLL ;A;
BUT MY POOR SHIWU ;A;
my poor bby!!! he's crying so much!!!
NOW THEY’RE BOTH CRYING OVER SHIFU'S BODYYYY ;A;
THIS IS SO FUCKING SAD ;A;
shen qiao what are u doing wITH THAT SWORD oh he's
he's doing a swear. he make an oath. ok cool
AWWWW THEY BURIED SHIFU AND CHUYI ;A;
spongebob squarepants narrator guy: a few days later~
shen qiao and shiwu stare sadly at the river and cry ;A; they're sad, i'm sad, WE'RE ALL SAD HERE ;A;
shen qiao: btw i'm adopting u :(
shiwu: ok thanks new dad ;A;
shen qiao does not respect his scabbard, he throws that shit to the ground without regard
THIS SONG SLAPS!!! i wonder if it's some sort of specific music?? the singer's voice seems different to what i’m used to hearing somehow?? it's BEAUTIFUL tho, i love it 💚💚💚
shen qiao: ok kid watch this and repeat after me *does a whole-ass ROUTINE that most adults couldn't do*
'shang he tong bei???' is that what the blade is called? woe for all??
shen qiao is filled with DETERMINATION!!! good for him!!!
i love this donghua but sometimes the pacing is a bit odd, and it's more noticeable with the bg music shifts lol. i don't mind it tho!!! i'm enjoying myself very much!! :DDD
goin for a lil swim, shen qiao?? 🌊
AWWW SHIWU ASKED IF HE COULD BE LIKE SHEN QIAO ;A; THAT'S FECKING ADORABLE ;A;
OH MY GODDDDD THEY'RE SO CUTE ;A;
shen qiao: u smiled!! it would make ur shifu and chuyi happy to see that :)
OOAOAJDIOSAJ THEY'RE HUGGINGGGGG
HE'S HUGGING THE BABYYYYYYY THEY ARE FRIENDS NOW THEY HUGOMG THEY HUG 💚💚💚💚
aaaaa it's very sweet to see shen qiao acting with such warmth to shiwu ;A; unlike SOME PPL 😒 (glares at young zhou zishu telling babby jiuxiao and chengling not to cry ) shen qiao u will make a very good surrogate dad!! i look forward to u not at all contributing to this child’s trauma thru ur either ur reckless actions or ur choice of husband!!
[Exit, pursued by a bear.]
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marquisoforder · 3 years
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Danmei bitches will show you a character and be like ‘that’s my liddol baby’ and the ‘liddol baby’ is either a mass murderer, war criminal, eligible for senior citizen discount coffee at McDonald’s or god forbid, all three of them
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baoshan-sanren · 3 years
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Hi...how are you? If you don't mind me asking what is your top 5 fav danmei novels (until now)? And why? Sorry if you've answered this question before.....
jfhdkhgfdjhdjks I JUST finished Peerless so that’s going first on my list bc I am weak and I WANT MORE
Peerless (无双) by Meng Xi Shi - (jjwxc link) (chapters 1-187) (extras 1-4) (not explicit) I am fckn IN LOVE with this novel. Feng Xiao and Cui Buqu are the most brilliant fucking morons I’ve ever met in my life. This is a slow build of all the slow builds, murder, intrigue, so much stupidity, court dramas, martial arts fights, levels of arrogance that would make even Yan Wushi shake his head (who does show up in a tiny little cameo in one of the chapters). The book is split up in five arcs that allow for a pause in between, if you find 190+ chapters to be too much for a continuous read through, but I would have flown through them in a space of a few days, if life hadn’t turned upside down on me. Now that I’m finally done, I miss these morons more than I’ve ever missed two fictional characters. This novel will def end up in my top five for a long time.
The Wife is First (妻为上) by Lu Ye Qian He - (jjwxc link) (chapters 1-5) (chapters 6-85 ongoing) (explicit) This is still, by far, the most feel-good danmei I’ve ever read. Jing Shao dies, then gets to relive his life all over again from the night of his wedding to Jun Qing. The beginning may be rough for some readers bc Jing Shao, despite getting another chance at life, has nonetheless arrived too late to prevent his first offense against the man he married (can you hear me screaming about hurt/comfort!). But from that point on, he is determined to do things differently, so the story that had been one of misery in his previous life, turns into one of love and devotion (and some very satisfying court scheming) in this one. It is an extremely satisfying read, and the relationship between the two mains, despite its rough start, is so goddamn lovely, I can’t recommend it enough. 
The Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System (人渣反派自救系统) by Mò Xiāng Tóngxiù - (physical novel purchase link) (chapters 1-80) (extras 80-98) (chapters 1-53 ongoing) (explicit) Yeah, this is my baby. I’ll admit off the bat I’ve read svsss at least ten times, which is five times more than either tgcf or mdzs. It’s hilarious, frustrating, insightful, feral, infuriating, and pretty fucking amazing, all at once, and all of it overlapping. I’ve written essays upon essays about mxtx’s creative choices in this novel, most of which will never see the light of day. This damn thing is so ridiculously rough on the surface, but svsss, for me, is like a damn onion, and every time I read it, I peel more layers off and find something else new underneath. I fucking love this damn novel, and you will only pry it from my cold dead hands. 
Lord Seventh (七爷) by Priest - (jjwxc link) (chapters 1-5) (chapters 6-7) (chapters 8-32) (chapters 33-76) (extras 1-3) (semi-explicit?) It’s kind of a crime that this is the only Priest novel on this list, but if I can only list five, I’m gonna try and not double up on authors. Highly, highly, recommend this, especially to people who plan to read Faraway Wanderers. Zhou ZiShu’s background doesn’t take up a large part of the story, but the environment in which he thrived at court tells you much more about him as a person than the first fifty chapters of tyk do (and in much more stark terms). Jing Beiyuan is an absolute fucking delight, a man who had reincarnated multiple times, but managed to keep all of his memories of his previous (pretty terrible) lives. His sense of humor is therefore honed to the nth degree, and he is simultaneously a giant gremlin who takes nothing and no one seriously, but is also utterly done with everyone’s shit. Basically a story about being destined to forever be entangled with another person, and then deliberately choosing not to be. I love this goddamn novel to pieces. 
The Husky and His White Cat Shizun (二哈和他的白猫师尊) by Meatbun Doesn't Eat Meat - (jjwxc link) (chapters 1-4) (chapters 5-149 ongoing) (heavily explicit) This fucking novel haunts me. It’s been over a year since I’ve read it, and I still sometimes lie awake, staring at the ceiling, wondering about the nature of life, love, forgiveness, and redemption (and then I curse Meatbun to high heaven). I once described reading 2ha as being stuffed feet-first into a wood-chipper for 200 out of 300+ chapters, and I still hold to that description. But this is, hands down, one of the most hauntingly beautiful novels I’ve ever read. To anyone who intends to read it, I highly recommend checking out a detailed list of content warnings first, buying three boxes of tissues, and being ready to have your life ruined for good. 
Once again, I ask those who are willing and able, to buy the original novels and support the authors. (jjwxc buying guide for english-speakers here)
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hunxi-after-hours · 3 years
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Any thoughts on the similarities and differences between hualian and yanshen??
(kicks down the door) DO I HAVE THOUGHTS OR WHAT
so it's funny you ask this, anon, because when I was reading 《千秋》 and Going Through It, I distinctly remember trying to explain it to people and at one point saying "the main ship of 《千秋》 is like TGCF if the central ship of TGCF was Xie Lian/Bai Wuxiang"
which, having now finished the book, isn't actually that accurate, but I think it gets at the Two Main Things that come to mind when I compare and contrast TGCF/QQ: 1) Xie Lian and Shen Qiao parallels, and 2) the arc of enemies/symbolic opposites/narrative foils-to-lovers
I think there's a lot to unpack between TGCF and QQ on levels of character, theme, and relationship, which all orbit around/interact with the material of the central ship, so grab some tea, this is going to get roundabout:
first, let's talk character similarities w/o relationships in the picture:
Shen Qiao 🤝 Xie Lian:
too good for this world, too pure
has gone through literal hell and back
refuses to give up morals even under the threat of intense suffering/death
ridiculously pretty
unrepentant sword nerd
always assumes the best of people
Yan Wushi 🤝 Hua Cheng:
will roast anything that moves
ambiguously evil (or at least, perceived as evil by other characters in the narrative)
can and will wipe the floor with anyone in the room
does not especially care for anyone beyond their immediate circle of close loved one(s)
so we can see a lot of superficial similarities between hualian and yanshen (it's the dynamic of ghost king/demonic cultivator x pure-hearted Daoist), but truth be told, I think the similarities between Shen Qiao and Xie Lian does most of that work, rather than anything inherent about the hualian vs. yanshen relationship
because Hua Cheng and Yan Wushi have starkly different character arcs, which then reflects upon the general relationship arcs in their respective stories
in TGCF, the only thing keeping hualian apart are the secrets they hold about themselves. seriously, by the end of book one (book!! one!! of!! five!!) the two of them move into Puqi Shrine together and live in peak domesticity until the plot comes rudely knocking on the door. the only reasons why hualian don't get together immediately are because 1) the plot Continues to Happen, and 2) they met each other like, yesterday, they're still getting around to actually knowing each other
the slow burn of TGCF primarily comes from the flashback reveals about hualian's past--for Xie Lian, his greatest secret and greatest shame is how close he came to becoming a Calamity, which is why when Hua Cheng tells Xie Lian that he was there, that he had been at his side, that he supported and loved Xie Lian unconditionally through the darkest days of his immortal life, Xie Lian is amazed and moved to tears
for Hua Cheng, his greatest secret and greatest shame is the true depths of his obsessive love, overcoming a certain amount of internalized shame and of course, the mortifying ordeal of having exactly how much you care be known by the object of your affections
but like, once they talk it out on both sides, they are in full battle couple mode from pretty much mid-book three onwards
MEANWHILE WITH YANSHEN. god. meanwhile with yanshen, there are no secrets to be revealed between them; their relationship does not hinge on the revelation of truths but rather the slow accumulation of shared experiences. in direct contrast to hualian, who are functionally together for most of the book, yanshen don't get together until the literal fanwai because Meng Xishi makes them earn it
oh my god she makes them work so hard for it
Yan Wushi is quite upfront with his attraction to Shen Qiao from the early chapters, but that’s all it is, really--Shen Qiao is drop-dead gorgeous, Yan Wushi is human, and there isn’t really any emotional or romantic content in their relationship beyond that. Shen Qiao, however, is definitively uninterested in Yan Wushi’s cursory advances (and the advances of literally everyone else in the jianghu sdlfkjs;flakdj), and brushes them off with long-suffering tolerance
in direct contrast to hualian, whose primary obstacle to their relationship is their knowledge (or ignorance) of each other’s past (which is, again, fairly easy to overcome because it’s no more and no less than the mortifying ordeal of being known), the primary obstacle to yanshen’s relationship is yanshen themselves
exhibit A, of course, being The Betrayal, but also the separate journeys yanshen take to realizing and accepting the fact that yes, they would in fact be interested in a relationship with the other, and yes, it takes these two chuckleheads the whole damn book to figure this out (I say, with great fondness; I wouldn’t have them any other way)
if Hua Cheng’s character arc is coming to accept himself for who he is (I’m thinking of this phenomenal meta in particular) and how much he loves (and that his love is both valuable and good), then Yan Wushi’s character arc revolves around realizing that Shen Qiao (and what Shen Qiao represents) is not only worthy of respect and admiration, but specifically worthy of his love and devotion (one of these days I’ll get over the story of the goddamn stone but not today)
meanwhile, Shen Qiao’s character arc... is about a lot of things besides yanshen, but specifically Shen Qiao’s character arc in context of their relationship goes through:
he saved my life so I owe him mine. it’s not personal though
he sold me out. that kinda felt personal?
I saved his life so we’re now even, I swear it’s not personal
we keep saving each other’s lives, and also helping each other out. it might be getting personal?
oh my god it’s personal, I actually care about him now, please don’t die you dumbass
Shen Qiao is such a fascinating character because if you don’t take the time to  excavate his interiority, he seems simple, boring, one-dimensionally good, but once you go looking, the fabric of his person is actually built of an incredibly complex weave of guilt and grief, sacrifice and selfhood, determination and resolve
and a good amount of it has to do with his developing relationship with Yan Wushi. for the vast majority of the book, Shen Qiao keeps Yan Wushi firmly at arm’s length, and his interactions with Yan Wushi are never anything beyond necessary, polite, and professional (as he can make it)
this of course, gets sorely tested due to (waves vaguely) All the Shit That Goes Down in the plot, and also Yan Wushi In General, but all the way up until... heck, up until Shen Qiao takes back sect leadership of Xuandu Shan, Shen Qiao sees Yan Wushi as nothing more than like... a coworker. a weirdly close colleague. someone he’s fought with, multiple times, a fellow traveller of the same way somehow, and it’s not until Shen Qiao hears of Yan Wushi’s challenge to Hu Lu Gu, which isn’t on Shen Qiao’s behalf but neither is it not on Shen Qiao’s behalf that something slides into place and Shen Qiao goes oh. oh?
...him, really?
and like... there’s all the domesticity of the days before the final duel, Shen Qiao slowly allowing himself to admit that actually, he does care, and in fact cares very deeply, which culminates in his realization on the peak, cradling Yan Wushi’s cooling body
because here’s the thing: as long as their relationship is professional, is impersonal, then Shen Qiao doesn’t have to acknowledge how deeply Yan Wushi’s betrayal hurt him. when people try to offer him sympathy, or condolences, or mockery disguised as sympathy or condolences about Yan Wushi’s betrayal, Shen Qiao shrugs it off and explains that Yan Wushi is just like that, it wasn’t personal, but at the same time, as long as Shen Qiao denies this, he will never have closure. he cannot forgive Yan Wushi for this betrayal until they both acknowledge that actually, it’s been personal from the beginning. Yan Wushi gets there before Shen Qiao does, but Shen Qiao figures it out, eventually
I’ve written in the past about the yanshen relationship, and how it isn’t so much a relationship of knowing as it is one of choosing. Yan Wushi chooses Shen Qiao to love and cherish; Shen Qiao chooses to forgive Yan Wushi, to allow their relationship to move forward. again, in stark contrast to hualian, the main obstacle in the yanshen relationship is their own individual character arcs, which eventually lead them to a place where they can realize the potential of their shared relationship arc
I also think it’s worthwhile to point out that Hua Cheng isn’t... he’s not evil at all. his morals are at all times taizi-dianxia-oriented, which is quite compatible with Xie Lian’s general goodness and Xie Lian’s laidback attitude about morality in general (Xie Lian may be a pure force of kindness and goodness, but he recognizes his own exceptionalism and does not expect the same of anyone else). meanwhile Yan Wushi isn’t... he’s not like, the mindless, destructive evil that Bai Wuxiang embodies in TGCF, but doing good and accumulating merit isn’t particularly high on his priority list. Xie Lian and Hua Cheng almost never argue, and especially never come to blows over their disagreements in moral frameworks. Arguing and coming to blows over disagreements in moral frameworks, however, lies at the heart of the yanshen relationship. Yan Wushi and Shen Qiao are constantly challenging each other and each other’s beliefs, taking turns to verbally roast or physically drag the other as the opportunity arises (fine, it’s mostly Yan Wushi doing the roasting/dragging but Shen Qiao gets a few good ones in there)
sldkjfslkdjf this is getting extremely long again, tl;dr hualian / yanshen parallels exist primarily on the levels of Xie Lian / Shen Qiao parallels, but the differences between Hua Cheng and Yan Wushi is where the hualian / yanshen parallels begin to diverge
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tofufei · 2 years
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got tagged by @not-saying-revolution-but and @seeorseem!
three ships: I'm thinking about recently (not necessarily romantic)
Shen Wei & Yezun from Guardian
Seo Yul & Yoon Hagyeong from Chief Kim
Shen Qiao & Yan Wushi from Thousand Autumns
first ever ship: would you believe me if I said Viktor/Yuuri from YOI? because before YOI I hadn't been in fandom at all and engaged with media from a shipping lense
last song: 归山 by 泥鳅
last film: ... my brother had to watch Mother! for class and invited me and regret that I indulged him because I hated every second of it
currently reading: still reading some chapters of 《镇魂》 on and off and I still don't know when I'm gonna drop it; just started to read 《千秋》; in the middle of The Murderbot Diaries series
currently watching: Nothing currently currently, though All Quiet in Peking and Young Blood are on hold rn and I might resume them in the near future. (All Quiet in Peking is SO damn draggy but 2.5 more episodes on 2x speed and I'll soon be done. Young Blood is fun and lighthearted though I don't think I'll finish it, it's not quite my type of show)
currently consuming: an orange and genshin impact team building guides
currently craving: restful sleep and energy :')
tagging @ineedarendezvous, @brandybradyrandyandyndy, @disasternoj and @elberlight. no pressure of course!
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ryukoishida · 3 years
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Qian Qiu/Thousand Autumns Fic: In which YWS experiences qi-deviation and SQ helps out.
Title: Down for You Fandom: Qian Qiu / Thousand Autumns Characters/Ships: YanShen Rating: NSFW Chapter: 1/1 Summary: [Post Canon] While experimenting with further improving Fundamental Records of Phoenix-Qilin, Yan Wushi suffered from sexually-driven qi deviation, which he tried to hide from Shen Qiao. When Shen Qiao finally realized what was wrong and offered to help, Yan Wushi felt conflicted. A/N: Another qi deviation fic? Yes. Let me join in the fun too please and thank.
---
Yan Wushi hated asking for help.
He viewed dependence on someone else as a weakness – a weakness that he as one of the strongest martial arts masters under the heavens had no need for. Even since he was young, he thrived on being on his own: with no other pupils to distract him, and no overbearing teacher to instruct him point-by-point, he was able to concentrate on his training and meditation in his own pace and direction that had taken him higher on the path to greatness and strength in the martial arts realm.
To Yan Wushi, other people were either nuisances for him to flick off like pestering flies or rivals worthy of challenging; friends were merely an unnecessary burden.
Taking on two disciples during the last few decades had not changed his perspective on this. He took on Bian Yanmei and Yu Shengyan knowing that their independent personalities would work well with his hands-off teaching method. And thankfully, both of his disciples turned out to be more than capable to handle themselves and sect affairs when he wasn’t around.
In short, Yan Wushi hated asking for help. He never saw the need, and so perhaps had forgotten how.
Subsequently, when Shen Qiao asked him what was wrong with the slightest hint of worry between his brows, out of pure habit, Yan Wushi smiled and replied lightly, if not a little breathlessly from the itching heat that was very slowly inching from his solar plexus to the rest of his body through his bloodstreams, “nothing, my beloved.”
Even speaking such few words proved to be challenging; his throat protested with a parched, sweet burn that could only be satiated with the touch of one person, and one person only.
But Yan Wushi didn’t dare ask. He’d already asked too much of Shen Qiao by being here with him, standing beside him as if they were equals.
Shen Qiao’s frown deepened a little, barely noticeable. The answer clearly didn’t satisfy the sect leader of Xuan Du, yet Shen Qiao was a patient man and was not one to force answers out of Yan Wushi until he knew his husband was ready to divulge. Heaving a soft sigh and aiming a knowing look at the other man, Shen Qiao only pressed his lips into a tight line and lowered his gaze back to the scroll he’d been reading.
It wasn’t the first time he’d experienced qi deviation. During the years in his training to reach the higher levels of the Fundamental Records of Phoenix-Qilin, Yan Wushi had suffered countless instances and variations of his qi running erratic in his meridian network – icy needles prickling his bones, bursting flames scorching his flesh, paralysis rendering him completely vulnerable – and he’d overcame each and every single one of them without anyone’s interference or assistance.
The slow-burning heat like molten lava crawling slowly up and down his limbs and prickling just beneath his skin was nothing he’d ever experienced before, but Yan Wushi was certain he could get through this troublesome phase with a few more days of meditation and rewiring of his meridian network.
“You will tell me if there is something wrong, will you not?” Shen Qiao’s gaze didn’t move away from the text on his scroll, but his voice was quiet and genuine with concern.
“Of course, Ah-Qiao.”
-
Three more days of silently suffering the gradually increasing discomfort of feverish sensitivity and the progressively difficulty of ignoring the pulsing desire running wild within his body that no meditation nor long soaks in cold water could suppress, Yan Wushi was desperate.
He wouldn’t allow his disciples or other servants near him for the last few days, and to Shen Qiao’s surprise, he’d even turned his own husband away, muttering something along the lines of not wishing to pass whatever illness he had to his beloved partner. Given any other day, Shen Qiao would have left him be, but Yan Wushi’s behavior had been too uncharacteristic even for the man’s eccentric personality, and that was the moment when the sect leader of Xuan Du couldn’t pretend to be oblivious anymore.
“Yan-zongzhu…”
After knocking on the door of their shared bedchamber in Yuxu Pavilion and receiving no reply, Shen Qiao gingerly opened the door and stepped in. Night had already fallen hours ago and the candles were burning low, the orange glow of the flames flickering when the evening breeze slipped in through the gap of the open door before stilling again.
“Yan-zongzhu?” Shen Qiao tried again, tone soft, making his way to the side of the bed, where Yan Wushi was lying on his back, blankets kicked messily to the side and clothing haphazardly loosened in a state of disarray. His breathing was shallow and harsh, skin flushed and streaked with sweat, exposed chest rising and falling in an abnormal rate that made Shen Qiao rushed the last few steps to the bed and reached out for his companion’s wrist.
He rested two fingers against Yan Wushi’s pulse point, attempting to get a reading, but before he could accurately diagnose the man’s condition, Yan Wushi pulled his arm away with a groan.
“Ah-Qiao…” Yan Wushi croaked out, his voice much hoarser and lower than usual from how dry the inside of his mouth was, and he cleared his throat, eyes fluttering open and head turning slightly to look at Shen Qiao. His pupils were dilated so that only a thin ring of red-brown could be seen. “As much as I appreciate your concern, there really is nothing for you to worry about.”
“Yan Wushi!” Shen Qiao’s patience was running thin, and Yan Wushi could tell because he was calling him by his full name. With quick reflexes, Shen Qiao caught his husband’s wrist again, this time using a bit more force to keep him in place as he tried to read his pulse once more. The palpitation was strangely rapid and inconsistent, with a rhythm that he wasn’t familiar with from any medical books he’d read.
Brows gathering into a deeper frown and lips tightening into a straight line, Shen Qiao placed his palm on the other man’s forehead, and was shocked at the burning temperature of his skin there. He continued his examination, gently feeling his cheek with the back of his hand, and then slender fingers were on the side of his neck – a man’s most vulnerable point, easily grasped and snapped into pieces – but Yan Wushi only craved more, Shen Qiao’s cool fingertips and innocent touches merely serving to ignite whatever was flaring wildly inside his body.
Shen Qiao detected a change in Yan Wushi’s breathing, and simply deduced that as being his condition worsening. He quickened his examination, his hand briefly resting on Yan Wushi’s sternum before sliding lower to his solar plexus, all the while focusing his own qi to the center of his palm to see if he could at least alleviate some of the discomfort and ease the stranded qi into flowing again.
“Hah…!” Yan Wushi jerked as the qi from Shen Qiao’s palm entered through his skin and into his meridian network. It had felt… good. Too good, in fact, that he was afraid he might lose control of himself if he didn’t stop what his dear husband was doing right now.  
In his current weakened state, Yan Wushi had no real strength to push back, and so he resorted to his infamous verbal skills. Lifting up his shuddering arm, he covered the back of Shen Qiao’s hand, which was still laying lightly across his husband’s stomach, with his own, interlaced their fingers together and pulled that pale jade hand towards his lips, murmuring against his warm skin in a low voice.
“Ah-Qiao… my good Ah-Qiao… do not be angry with me,” Yan Wushi was using his best impression of an overly-affectionate cat. His saccharine tone shouldn’t be so effective on Shen Qiao, but when it was paired with the teary-eyed gaze, flushed cheeks, and strands of star-white hair stuck to his temple, Shen Qiao felt the initial heat of his frustration simmered away until nothing but a soft smoldering tenderness was left.
Shen Qiao sighed but allowed Yan Wushi to keep holding his hand.
“Yan-lang, I am not angry, but I wish you would tell me right away when something like this happen. If you were to…” Shen Qiao’s mind flashed to the memory of Yan Wushi’s lifeless body lying on the cold, hard ground after his last fight with Hulugu, and he squeezed his eyes close, shaking his head viciously to tear himself away from that nightmarish image. “No, you cannot do that to me again. Promise me that you will not hide yourself like this next time you experience another instance of qi-deviation, or anything else.”
“Call me that again, and I will promise you anything you want.”
“Call you…?” Shen Qiao realized belatedly that he’d been addressing Yan Wushi with the pet name he only used sparingly during their most intimate moments, and he felt his face heating up from embarrassment. “Yan Wushi, this is a serious issue. If you continue to jest around as if your life is a joke —”
“How could I treat my own life as a joke when there is someone who care so deeply for me?” Yan Wushi lightly kissed the back of Shen Qiao’s hand before smiling up at him, the expression so indulgent and gentle – so unlike the usual bold and wolfish grin – that it took all of Shen Qiao’s self-control to not combust on the spot.
“Y-Yan-lang, that is beside the point.”
Despite his cold words, Shen Qiao conceded but quickly continued as if that little scene didn’t happen, “it seems like the flow of your qi is stuck somewhere along the Conception Vessel, probably between the Huiyin point and Qihai point, but it is better if we have a physician take a look—”
“Absolutely not,” Yan Wushi was adamant about this.
“Yan-lang, now is not the time to be headstrong,” Shen Qiao tried to persuade his partner. “Who knows what will happen if we do not act quickly to resolve the qi deviation?”
“This venerable one will not let anyone else touch me other than you.”
“I do not know how to help you…” Shen Qiao said, powerless against the demonic sovereign when he was acting so childishly, “perhaps with acupuncture…?”  
“I do,” Yan Wushi said quickly, “and it definitely does not involve needles.”
He internally shuddered at the thought of those sharp, silver, pointy metal bits entering his acupressure points.
“All right,” Shen Qiao acquiesced with a resigned sigh, “will you at least tell me how, then?”
“It is quite simple, really,” one corner of Yan Wushi’s lips curved up into a slight grin, and Shen Qiao suddenly had a bad feeling about this, “I just need Ah-Qiao to enter me and climax inside me while at the same time stimulate a few specific acupressure points on my body with your qi.”
“… pardon me?”
It was solely thanks to Shen Qiao’s strict upbringing that he didn’t instantly slap Yan Wushi across the face and leave.
Rather than repeating himself – because he was sure that Shen Qiao had heard exactly what he’d said – Yan Wushi guided his husband’s hand from his mouth and southward, past his chest and stomach, and finally let it rest on his crotch, which, despite the layers of clothing, was quite obviously stirring in interest, as it had been for the past few days no matter how many times Yan Wushi had tried to resolve this problem by himself.
“Please, Ah-Qiao, will you not help your poor husband out? You know I do not beg easily, but for you…” Yan Wushi grinded up against Shen Qiao’s palm, and even though that slight friction was not nearly enough to quench his yearning, knowing that it was Shen Qiao who was touching him down there was sufficient to make the demonic sovereign bite his lower lip to dampen the whimper that was slipping out prettily. His body trembled with want, aching to be touched; he had to internally force his own frame to remain in place instead of springing up like a predator to trap Shen Qiao within his arms.  
“Yan-lang, you know you never have to plead with me if you truly need help, right?” Shen Qiao was not used to seeing this side of Yan Wushi. Even as young as Xie Ling and as mellow as Ah-Yan were, none of his split personalities had ever acted like this. From Yan Wushi’s own perspective, this kind of behavior was unbecoming, a display of weakness, a sign of disgrace, and so he would never have allowed himself to fall into this pathetic state.
Shen Qiao’s fingers were twitching from the heat emanating from Yan Wushi’s erection, so it was a wonder he was able to inquire in a calm tone, “but are you certain that this is the only way to redirect your qi?”
“My good Ah-Qiao, please… I… I need you to touch me or I am literally going to die.”
Now Yan Wushi was being rather dramatic, and they both knew it. Even Shen Qiao was trying hard not to crack a smile at that as Yan Wushi continued his lament.
“Is that what you want? Do you want your husband to die from something as ridiculous as sexually-driven qi deviation?”
“For someone who is supposedly suffering, Yan-zongzhu sure runs his mouth too much,” Shen Qiao’s inhibition had melted away, and his worry seemed to have alleviated somewhat as well, after seeing that Yan Wushi was still capable of his melodramatic antics. “Shall I put your mouth to better use?”
Shen Qiao allowed himself to be pulled forward and down until their noses were nuzzling against each other’s, their breaths mingling hotly while the sect leader of Xuan Du ran his fingers back up to his exposed chest, splaying his hand against the patch of warm skin there. Feeling his husband’s heart thrumming beneath his fingertips, Shen Qiao’s own chest felt full of emotions that were impossible to put into words, so he didn’t try – not when he could communicate those feelings through his actions.
“And what does Shen-zhangjiao suggest?” Yan Wushi whispered, each word branding against the other man’s lips like the sweetest poison.
Shen Qiao wordlessly closed the distance between them, first with a chaste kiss of lips gently touching, and then almost instantly flared into a wet, messy clashing of mouths, teeth, and tongues initiated by Yan Wushi. Before long, however, even the demonic sovereign was feeling the radiating waves of heat and languor struck his muscles once more, and Shen Qiao was able to regain control by trapping Yan Wushi’s wrists to his sides while he counterattacked with biting kisses and soothing licks along the side of his neck.
Red and violet bruises bloomed like sweet fragrant alyssum blossoms where Shen Qiao’s mouth roamed, and the mere thought of the pure and virtuous Shen-zhangjiao of Xuan Du Sect marking him thus was making Yan Wushi harder than ever, and he made sure to let Shen Qiao know by releasing needy, broken moans of “Ah-Qiao” and “hurry”.
Soon enough, Shen Qiao had Yan Wushi’s robes removed and pants halfway tangled down his muscular legs, and while Shen Qiao had been imbued with an intoxicating sense of new-found confidence that had allowed him to initiate the kiss, yet as soon as he had laid bare Yan Wushi, his eyes roaming along the expanse of tanned skin and taut muscles aching to be touched and marred, the Daoist found himself hesitating once more.
He’d been kissing his way down his husband’s hipbone and the junction between his hip and thigh, and Shen Qiao could smell the musk of Yan Wushi’s arousal, which only served to make his cheeks heat up more. He froze at the sight of his husband’s swollen and dripping cock.
“You know…” Shen Qiao started, gaze downcast, “I have never done this before, so let me know if you feel any discomfort or pain…”
As if Yan Wushi needed that reminder.
He’d been trying so hard to maintain the last thread of self-control he had, too, and one innocent comment from his dear husband had completely shattered what sanity remained inside of him.
“My good Ah-Qiao,” Yan Wushi breathed out, reaching for the other man’s hands, and their fingers interlaced as if it was the most natural thing in the world, “no matter what you do to me, I am certain that I will have nothing but praises for you.”
Shen Qiao shook his head once and laughed softly, the sound and his expression so tender that Yan Wushi couldn’t help but squeeze his fingers tighter before guiding those same calloused hands to where Yan Wushi needed him to touch.
His cock was slick and hot – almost abnormally so, which Shen Qiao supposed made sense since this was a symptom of qi deviation – but it didn’t diminish the fact that it was big, the shine of pre-cum drooling from the tip simultaneously tempting and intimidating.
Shen Qiao swallowed at the sight despite Yan Wushi’s generous words, and tentatively, he licked the tip and contemplated the responsive shudder that ran up Yan Wushi’s spine.
A good sign, Shen Qiao mused quietly to himself, and then he did it again – small, experimental flicks of his tongue against the velvety skin of the head as if he was tasting a new flavor of candy. Shen Qiao decided he rather liked it, especially the interesting reactions his gesture seemed to be kindling in Yan Wushi, the way he hissed impatiently and tangling his fingers into Shen Qiao’s hair, tugging to beg wordlessly.
Encouraged by his husband’s response, Shen Qiao took it a step further, and envelope the entire head into the moist cavern of his mouth, first delicately wrapping his lips around the tip and taking care to not let his teeth scrape against the sensitive skin there, then slowly swallowing Yan Wushi centimeter by centimeter until he found it hard to breath and his jaw began to ach.
“Gods, Ah-Qiao, you are going to be the death of me…” Yan Wushi murmured shakily, his hand cradling the back of Shen Qiao’s head gently while fingers idly played with his frost green hair ribbon. The cold silk felt like cooling water in the springtime against his fingertips, and it reminded Yan Wushi of that one night when he used that exact hair ribbon to tie Shen Qiao’s wrists while he had his way with him.
The memories didn’t serve him well, for a stream of unfathomable heat and prickling desire blazed down his meridian network and made his cock twitch in Shen Qiao’s mouth.
Shen Qiao’s eyes flickered up to check on his husband, and noticed that Yan Wushi had one arm thrown across his face in an attempt to muffle his moans. His hazel eyes darkened, and he resumed to sucking; where his mouth couldn’t reach, Shen Qiao made use of his hand at the base, pumping in time with the movement of his mouth and tongue and sliding wetly up and down Yan Wushi’s length.
Feeling his thighs beginning to shake at the anticipation of release, Shen Qiao pulled up but his hand didn’t let up its pace. He peppered contrastingly soft kisses along the inside of Yan Wushi’s thigh while his hand tugged in a tempo that was verging on brutal, but that was exactly what Yan Wushi needed.
It didn’t take long for him to climax into Shen Qiao’s hand with a choked groan, and strands of white landed on his own abdomen as well as on his husband’s still clean and meticulous robes.
“W-was that all right?” Shen Qiao asked, uncertainty tinting his hoarse whisper as he climbed back up to look at Yan Wushi properly. He was about to measure the man’s pulse again when he saw tear streaks down Yan Wushi’s cheeks. Heart seized up in a panic, he quickly dabbed the wetness away with his sleeve, a trail of apologies ready on his tongue.
Yan Wushi caught his forearm and planted a small kiss on the inside of his wrist.
“It was more than all right,” Yan Wushi assured him with a languid smile, releasing Shen Qiao’s hand and raising his arm up to brush his thumb against the other man’s red and abused lower lip, the colour so mesmerizing that he couldn’t help but pull Shen Qiao down for a brief but dirty, open-mouthed kiss before murmuring against his ear once they both ran out of air, “in fact, I think I am already starting to feel better, but you know this husband needs more, right?”
Shen Qiao nodded, biting his lip. After easing off of Yan Wushi’s body, he shrugged off his soiled outer robe and moved to retrieve the ceramic vial that he knew his husband kept inside a hidden compartment by the side of their bed. He fumbled with the stopper until it popped out, and he shakily poured out a significant amount of carrageenan extract into his hand.
The texture of it was a little off-putting – a sticky gel-like consistency that reminded him of… another kind of bodily fluid – but he wanted to ensure that he wouldn’t hurt Yan Wushi in the process. After all, Shen Qiao himself wasn’t very experienced, and though this whole ordeal was nothing but a medical treatment, the sect leader of Xuan Du still needed to ensure that Yan Wushi would not be wounded further.
“You will tell me if I am hurting you, will you not?”
The concern in his eyes was genuine. Everything about Shen Qiao was genuine, and Yan Wushi used to think this kind of naturally honest nature was the trait of an absolute fool, yet here he was, in love with a so-called fool.
Maybe he was the one who’d become a fool after all this time.
He didn’t have enough time to contemplate any further than that, because Shen Qiao was kissing him on the mouth when he didn’t answer.
“Yan-lang?”
Yan Wushi couldn’t find it in himself to tease his husband this time, so with equal sincerity, he said, “I will, Ah-Qiao.”
“Good,” Shen Qiao nodded with a small satisfied smile.
With his fingers slicked up with lubricant, Shen Qiao once again returned his attention to his present task. He knelt between Yan Wushi’s legs, which he had opened up slightly wider to more easily accommodate his partner, and carefully slipped the tip of his middle finger into Yan Wushi’s puckered hole.
Unaccustomed to the strange sensation down there, Yan Wushi instinctively wanted to escape from the touch by closing his legs together, but Shen Qiao steadied him with his other hand by firmly pushing against his thigh while pushing his finger further in until the entire digit was swallowed up by the warm tightness.
“Nnng… Ah-Qiao… it feels odd…” Yan Wushi exhaled with a tremulous murmur.
“Odd in a good way or in a bad way?” Shen Qiao asked, stilling his motion and lifting his gaze back up to Yan Wushi’s face to observe his expression.  
“Undetermined,” Yan Wushi decided, letting his eyes fall close and breathing out to try to relax his body. The unyielding roiling waves of gnawing desire had subsided a little after he’d climaxed earlier, but with his qi still stuck, that unwelcoming stream of energy was beginning to gather at the pit of his stomach all too soon, causing his cock to stir again even though he hadn’t been touched there yet.
“Hm,” Shen Qiao only hummed thoughtfully. He opted to continue for now.
He pumped his finger in and out a few times to allow Yan Wushi to get used to the sensation before he increased the pace and added a second finger, crooking them in a shallow angle to find the correct acupressure points. To Shen Qiao’s delight, the gesture caused Yan Wushi’s breathing to quicken, his chest rising and falling in tormented groans. His cock lengthened and swelled with blood, and was soon back to its full strength.
“Haaah… Ah-Qiao, keep going…”
The fingering had felt good – so damn good – even though Shen Qiao claimed that he was inexperienced. He must have picked up some skills from Yan Wushi during their previous intimate nights, for after the early moment of embarrassment and hesitation, the way he manipulated Yan Wushi’s body with his slender and calloused fingers had become proficient and deadly.
“I am going to start transferring my qi through your acupoints starting from the Qugu point,” Shen Qiao said, trying to tear his eyes away from Yan Wushi’s debauched expression –  silvery-white and ink-black hair sticking to his sweat-slicked skin, eyes squeezed close, head craned back to expose the strong line of his throat, and the occasional moans slipping past his throat – but as he shifted his gaze back to where his fingers were, still buried deep within Yan Wushi’s hole, which had turned dusty pink and glistening from the extract around the ridge, Shen Qiao was starting to question his ability to carry on this operation.
“W-what?”
The feverish desire had reached its new height so that Yan Wushi was unable to think clearly. He was only vaguely aware that Shen Qiao said something and that he needed something much bigger and thicker to fill the void that was verging on swallowing his whole being.
“Never mind,” Shen Qiao said and took a deep breath to regain focus. With attentive eyes and precise execution, Shen Qiao directed the qi inside of his own body so that it flowed in a gradual stream towards the tips of his middle and ring fingers; when he grazed upwards, he aimed the flow of qi to the Qugu point, which was physically the closest to where his fingertips were.
From there, Shen Qiao pushed his qi forward, testing the give of the entire trail of Conception Vessel before forcing it through to the next acupoint, up Zhongji and pierced through to Guanyuan.
“Yan-lang, how do you feel?”
Yan Wushi had been chillingly quiet since Shen Qiao had started transferring his own qi into his husband’s body, and his abnormal silence made the Daoist thought that maybe the demonic sovereign was rejecting his qi due to their different martial arts origins.  
“Ah-Qiao…” he gasped, eyes hooded and the blood-red of his irises just a thin ring from his fully dilated pupils, “too… too much…”
Shen Qiao’s heart thudded against his ribcage at how wrecked Yan Wushi sounded. He’d never seen the man like this, even when he was lost in the deepest end of pleasure, and somewhere buried, hidden, and shaped by years of Daoist teachings and morals was an instinctive part of Shen Qiao that had woken up from seeing this vulnerable, intimate side of the usually self-assured and strong Yan Wushi, the cold, ruthless, selfish leader of Huan Yue Sect.
“Yan-lang,” Shen Qiao caressed his husband’s cheek in comfort, wiping away a stray tear that’d escaped his eyes, “we are almost there, just hold on for Ah-Qiao’s sake. Will you do that for me?”
Yan Wushi closed his eyes and shook his head, and his body seemed to suddenly stop being pliant as well.
Shen Qiao’s qi couldn’t advance further; if he kept forcing it, he might risk injuring the rest of Yan Wushi’s meridian system, and that was the last thing Shen Qiao wanted.
“All right, all right,” Shen Qiao cooed, gently taking his fingers out.
Yan Wushi sighed out with a shuddering breath, half in relief and half in lament at the dizzying empty feeling.
If this method didn’t work, he might need to find another way. Shen Qiao was nothing if not resourceful.
“Ah-Qiao, I want you…” Yan Wushi grasped Shen Qiao’s right hand and placed it pointedly against his husband’s clothed arousal, the fabric of which had already been darkened from spots of precum.
“!”
Shen Qiao shuddered when Yan Wushi weakly squeezed his cock through his trousers.
Well, Yan Wushi never had been one to beat around the bush, so Shen Qiao didn’t know what he’d been expecting.
“I —” Shen Qiao paused. Verbally expressing his affection for his husband still didn’t come easily to him, but there were rare moments like this that he found it to be the simplest, most natural thing to do. “I want you, too, Yan-lang.”
The candles were burning dangerously low, and a few had already extinguished, casting the room deeper into the night.
After removing the rest of his clothing, Shen Qiao folded the blanket into a make-shift cushion and placed it under his partner’s lower back before settling back between Yan Wushi’s legs. With one hand wrapped around Yan Wushi’s waist to steady him and the other gently parting the two mounds of firm muscles to reveal the slightly swollen hole, Shen Qiao lined himself up.
All this time, he’d been so focused on mending Yan Wushi’s meridian network that he’d been neglecting his own desire, and now that it’d been freed from the restraint of his undergarment, it was clear that Shen Qiao had been holding back.
He started slow – for both Yan Wushi and his own sanity.  
The tip went in easily enough from the ample preparation and Shen Qiao’s own precum lubricating the first part of the entry. The velvet heat that instantly surrounded him was intoxicating, and if Shen Qiao had less self-control, he’d have immediately slammed himself in as deep and hard as he could, but in the end, he managed to reign in that flaring craving that was slowly but surely burning his logic and patience into ashes.
Resisting the urge to thrust all the way in took all of Shen Qiao’s willpower; his knuckles turned white from how hard he was grasping onto Yan Wushi’s hips, which would surely leave bruises that the demonic sovereign would later smugly show his embarrassed husband.
Little by little, Shen Qiao pushed himself into that addictive and delicious heat, all the time still observing for any ailing changes in Yan Wushi’s body. If anything, it seemed having Shen Qiao slowly fucking himself into him only made him more vocal.
“D-do not stop, please… feels good…” Yan Wushi wasn’t helping a bit as he wrapped his legs tightly around Shen Qiao’s waist, imploring for him to go deeper.
Seeing that he wasn’t causing his partner any discomfort, Shen Qiao steeled himself and plunged all the way in until he was fully sheathed. He panted harshly into Yan Wushi’s mouth, who slipped his tongue sloppily into the offered mouth and teased Shen Qiao with filthy kisses that had them both breathing hard.
Shen Qiao finally lost that last strand of calm composure. Foreheads touching, eyes clouded by ravenous hunger, and forearms caging Yan Wushi’s yearning body between his arms, Shen Qiao pulled out slightly and thrusted back in, with enough force to make Yan Wushi gasp and scrambling for purchase.
He did it again and again, skin slapping against skin, the sound seeming to resonate within the walls of their sacred bedchamber, each time more urgent and more fervent than the last.
“Mnnn…. Fuck, Ah-Qiao feels so good inside me…”
“Haah… ah… do you feel no shame, Yan-zongzhu?” Shen Qiao nuzzled the side of Yan Wushi’s neck and kissed him roughly there, leaving more small bruises and teeth marks that wouldn’t fade for days.
“Aww… what happened to calling me ‘Yan-lang’?” Yan Wushi chuckled, placing one hand against the back of Shen Qiao’s head. A soft tug on the ribbon loosened the elegant twist of hair that cascaded over Shen Qiao’s pale shoulders like ink splashing on canvas. “Did I perhaps unknowingly anger Ah-Qiao?”
Shen Qiao paused, leaving only the tip of his cock inside his partner, which instantly drove Yan Wushi to buckle his hips upward in a sorry endeavor to tempt Shen Qiao into moving. He gave Yan Wushi a pointed glare, though the intended effect was dampened by the blush spreading from his cheeks down to his neck and chest and the fact that he was, in fact, fucking Yan Wushi into their bed.
“You know what you did,” Shen Qiao mumbled, finding himself impossible to be truly mad at him in this current situation.
“Hmm…” Yan Wushi scattered soft kisses on the other man’s forehead, eyelids, the bridge of his nose, and finally licking the shell of his ear, he continued with a grin, “can it be that Ah-Qiao is flustered by what I said?”
“There is no need for you to be using such foul and explicit language,” Shen Qiao argued, turning his head away, but it only gave Yan Wushi the perfect angle to kiss down his neck and nibble his collarbone.
“Oh, but there is a need,” Yan Wushi countered, tightening his legs around Shen Qiao’s waist so that he was dragged back into where Yan Wushi needed him to be. The fullness that had at first felt overwhelming was now a welcoming sensation, and he could feel the few acupoints that Shen Qiao had sent his qi through had been cleared, but there were still two spots that he knew needed to be unclogged before his own torrent of qi could flow smoothly and safely.  “I need to tell Ah-Qiao how well he had been treating this husband, do I not? And I cannot find the adequate language unless I am using those exact words. Is there something wrong with that? Does Ah-Qiao not like it when I give you compliments?”
“I-It is not like that!”
There was no use having a proper discussion with Yan Wushi’s twisted sense of logic, so Shen Qiao didn’t try to. Instead, he returned to his previous act, except this time he was thrusting in with more force and fire, almost like he was wordlessly taking his own personal vengeance against Yan Wushi’s body.
“Haaah… Ah-Qiao!” Yan Wushi groaned, casting a half-hearted accusatory glare at the other man when Shen Qiao hit the spot that made him see stars and his hole contract around his husband’s length. “… just because… just because you cannot see yourself winning the argument against this venerable one does not mean you should stoop to such low m— nnnng!” Distracted by the sudden onslaught of flickering flames licking down his back and in the pit of his stomach, Yan Wushi hadn’t noticed the fingers placed strategically across his abdomen until he felt a hot stream of foreign qi invaded his meridian network – just as Shen Qiao’s cock was sweetly, torturously invading his inside.
The pleasure that bloomed and erupted from the coil seated deep within him was blinding; it was wonderful and terrifying, devastating yet cherished. Yan Wushi hardly noticed Shen Qiao’s climax when he was still convulsing and quivering from his own release; thick ropes of milky white cum landed and splattered messily on his own chest and tainted Shen Qiao’s unmarred skin.  
His mind was blissfully blank for a brief moment while he waited for Shen Qiao to come down from his high. He sensed more than knew that he was filled to the brim with his husband’s seed, and that the last acupoints had been broached to allow his qi to flow effortlessly again.
The last candle burned out, and the room sank into complete darkness except for the hint of watery light from the crescent moon outside.
“Yan-lang?” Shen Qiao wanted to pull out but an arm thrown carelessly around his lower back stopped him from doing so. He heaved a soft sigh but remained in Yan Wushi’s embrace, laying his head against his husband’s chest despite the sticky, sweaty mess they’d made of each other.
“Hmm?” his voice rumbled in the dark, like the earth trembling beneath Shen Qiao’s feet, the sound irritatingly lackadaisical yet strangely kept his heart and mind at peace.
“Your meridian network…?”
“Thanks to Ah-Qiao’s magnificent medical skills, I believe my qi deviation has been treated and my meridian network perfectly restored,” Yan Wushi said, playing with a strand of Shen Qiao’s hair.
Shen Qiao exhaled in relief.
“Though to be certain that it is entirely healed, we might need to have the same treatment performed again, under Shen-zhangjiao’s skillful practice, of course.”
“Yan Wushi!”
Shen Qiao slapped him on the bicep, which only made Yan Wushi snicker harder.
When his laughter finally died down, and he could hear Shen Qiao’s breathing mellowing, Yan Wushi combed his fingers soothingly through his husband’s slightly tangled locks and murmured against the crown of his head.
“Shen Qiao.”
“Hmm?” he mumbled sleepily.
“Ah-Qiao.”
Shen Qiao opened his eyes blearily and pushed himself up just enough to look at Yan Wushi, who was gazing at him with bright eyes and a tender smile.
“Yes?”
A bit of his lucidity returned at the sight of Yan Wushi’s expression.
“I promise you,” Yan Wushi held onto Shen Qiao’s hand and placed a kiss on the back of it, “from this day on, I promise that no matter what kind of problems I may encounter, Ah-Qiao will be the first to know. In return, will you promise to stay by this venerable one’s side no matter what may become of me?”
“Silly Yan-lang,” Shen Qiao pecked him lightly on the forehead before making himself comfortable on Yan Wushi’s chest again, “always.”
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Five Mineral Drug
Five mineral powder (or wushi), also known as cold food powder (or hanshi), was one of the most widely used drugs in medieval China.  I have read the paper Lebensstil und Drogen im chinesischen Mittelalter by Rudolf G. Wagner and thought that those who can’t speak German might want to know more about it as well. In this, I will explain how it was found and popularized, the people who took this, symptoms, side effects, etc.
So I picked out a few texts and translated the translations from German to English. Keep in mind that the translation had gone from being originally written in Middle Chinese to being translated to German by Wagner, and then being translated by me in English. This is not an official translation, and I don’t want it to be treated as such. I tried finding alternative translations but in the end, I had to resort to translating most of it myself. My translations (which are Wagners translations) are marked with a ・ .
And also for those not bright enough: DO NOT RECREATE THIS TRASH! DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CONSUME IT! Jesus
Five Mineral Drug Before He Yan
There is not much known about the History before He Yan’s lifetime, but we have the following statement by Qin Zhengzu in his work Hanshi san lun ・ :
Although the recipe for the cold food powder originates in the Han Dynasty, there were not many who used it. But when the shangshu (He Yan) achieved godly mental abilities (because of the drug), it spread immensely throughout the era.
In Chao Yuanfang’s work Chaoshi Zhubing Yuanhuo [1] which citates Huangfu Mi ・ :
Where the drug came from is not known. Some say Hua Tuo invented it, others say it was Zhang Ji. If one examines the truthfulness on these accounts, it was plausible for Hua Tuo’s talent to invent simple recipes (which does not apply to the five mineral powder). In a text written by Zhang Ji, there is a recipe called Houshi Hei (Black Powder by Sir Hou) and a Zushi Ying recipe, both of those, have a similar composition like the Five Mineral Powder, and the codes of conduct (for the ingestion) are more or less the same. According to those two recipes, the plant-based and the mineral-based, I deduce the origins stem from Zhang Ji and not Hua Tuo.
Remarkable is that Huangfu Mi had to speculate even though He Yan was dead for only 30 years. Rudolf G. Wagner comments that Huangfu’s explanation could ring true because Zhang Ji was known as a doctor specialized in Shanghan diseases (cold diseases). Summarized we know that the drug was probably invented in the Han Dynasty and that it was meant to be used as medicine.
He Yan and the Popularization of The Five Mineral Drug
He Yan (d. 249) was the grandson of He Jin and grandnephew of Empress Dowager He. His mother Lady Yin, who was formerly the wife of He Xian, became the concubine of Cao Cao. Although he was closely affiliated with the imperial clan (through his mother and his wife Princess Jinxiang), he was largely unrecognized by them, Wendi of Wei even calling him a ‘false son'. He stayed out of government until Mingdi of Wei’s death. He Yan cultivated a circle of friends of scholarly interests, on which he exerted influence. His contemporaries include Wang Bi, Xiahou Xuan, Deng Yang, Li Sheng, and Zhuge Dan.
At the regency of Cao Shuang, he and his circle would take great influence in the years from 240 to 249, which was known as the Zhengshi era. He and Wang Bi (226-249)achieved great scholarly achievements in Neo-Daoism, also known as Xuanxue. The cultural, scholarly, and scientific advancements were unparalleled and imitated in later years. But the regime by Cao Shuang and his co-regent Sima Yi (179-251) would prove to be highly unstable. Cao Shuang and his circle came to represent the new elites with Xuanxue as their philosophy, and Sima Yi represented the orthodox Confucian landholders, who would feel threatened by He Yan and his friends who represented in many the new powerholders. Internal strifes in Cao’s faction and Sima Yi’s short retreat from the court would result in a coup d'état against Cao. Cao Shuang, He Yan, his supporters, and their families were all executed.
For a more thorough analysis on He Yan, I highly recommend DaolunofShiji’s A Case For He Yan.
He Yan was described in the He Yan Biezhuan:” His figure and face were of outstanding beauty; when he went outside, for a walk, onlookers would fill the streets; many said he was a genius”. Further, the Weilüe states: “...in all activities white cosmetic powder did not leave his hands, when walking he looked back at his shadow.” As a dandy, outstanding debater, and philosopher, he would dictate the beauty and philosophical trends, of not only his day but for the next centuries. For example, the former standards of attractiveness were in the Late Han Dynasty a warriorlike appearance with great strength to accompany it. Because of He Yan, the standards changed to a more docile and graceful appearance.
As a trendsetter, with no doubt many admirers, he introduced the drug in the Wei elite with his description of the drug cited in the Shishuo Xinyu: “Whenever I take five-mineral powder, not only does it heal any illness I might have, but I am also aware of my spirit and intelligence becoming receptive and lucid.” It’s popularity rose in the Wei-Jin elite as following anecdotes describe:
Chao Yuanfang’s work which cites Huangfu Mi in Chaoshi Zhubing Yuanhuo・ :
In youngest times, the shangshu He Yan devoted himself to music and appreciated sex, when he took the drug for the first time, his consciousness gained more clarity and his physical strength increased. In the capital (of Wei), everyone passed the drug around... After the death of He Yan, those who took the drug multiplied, and it didn’t slow down with time.
The drug not only aids ‘spirit and intelligence’ but also increases the enjoyment of music and sex.
Cao Shuang’s biography in the Sanguozhi [2]:
Shuǎng’s drink and food and chariots and clothing, imitated the Imperial carriage; craftsmen treasures and toys, filled up his house; wives and concubines filled his Rear Courtyard, and he also secretly took the Former Emperor’s Talent concubines of seven to eight women, and his offices and officials, teachers and workers, drums and horns, elite family’s sons and daughters of thirty-three people, all became his performers and musicians. He forged Imperial Order documents, sending out Talent concubines of fifty seven women to Yè terrace, and having the Former Emperor’s Fair concubines teach and practice performance. He usurped the Grand Musician’s musical instruments, and the Military Store’s prohibited weapons. He made cavern residences, fine engraving all around, repeatedly with [Hé] Yàn and the rest meeting inside, drinking liquor and making merry. 
Rudolf G. Wagner analysis that this scene is also in correlation to the five mineral powder, mainly being in a ‘cavern residence’ which helps with the side effects of the powder (I will explain the side effects later on). Also, the ‘Talented Concubines’ (who are Mingdi’s concubines), the excessive wine drinking, and the musical instruments indicate that the circumstance has been applied to fit the positives of using the drug and to alleviate the side effects.
Of course, this lifestyle would take a toll on He Yan’s health, as the powder that could ‘heal any illness’ betrayed him. As Guan Lu observed, not only He Yan but also his colleague Deng Yang were greatly weakened. The anecdote is in the Guan Lu biezhuan which you can find in his Sanguozhi biography[3]:
Deng Yang's gait is that of one whose sinews are loosed from his bones, and his pulse is unsteady. When he would stand, he totters as a man without limbs. This is the aspect of a disembodied soul. He Yan looks as if his soul was about to quit its habitation. He is bloodless, and what should be solid in him is mere vapor. He looks like rotten wood. This is the aspect of a soul even now in the dark valley.
Also the He Yan Biezhuan further states:” He had such a weakened constitution, that he couldn’t wear heavy silk anymore.” It is plausible that it is attributed to the drugs, the heavy silk could either produce more heat than he could handle, or it could apply pressure to the ulcers, you get from this drug, (but then again we will talk about the side effects later). Hao Yicheng (1757-1825) commented that if Sima Yi didn’t killed him, that he would have passed away anyway, because of the consequences of his drug use.
He Yan’s Legacy in Relation to the Drug
He Yan was the most important person concerning the rise of the drug in Wei-Jin circles. He was blamed for the moral decay of the elite, and over the centuries, criticized regularly for it. The following memorials bear witness to it:
Pei Wei’s (267-300) (whose father Pei Xiu passed away because of the drug, we will get to that later) memorial, which can be found in the Jinshu 35, criticizes Wang Yan and others for their admiration and imitating the actions of He Yan and Ruan Ji. It is explicitly mentioned that their rolemodels like themselves ran around naked, being unable to follow the rites.
Fan Ning, in the reign of Emperor Jianwen (reg. 371-373), presented in a memorial, which you can find in the Jinshu 75, in which he criticized He Yan and Wang Bi ‘That the faults of He Yan and Wang Bi are greater than Jie’s and Zhou’s faults’. Those two ‘terrible last rulers’ were considered evil, but only corrupted their own generation. He Yan and Wang Bi, on the other hand, exceeded the faults of ‘barbarians’ because their negative influence in all areas, corrupted the elite, the execution of He Yan and the establishment of a new dynasty affecting nothing to the problem. He is also implying that because the Jin elite followed He Yan’s and Wang Bi’s teachings, they couldn’t defend the north from the ‘barbarians’.
Sun Simiao (581-682) wrote in his treatise ‘Declaration of the Toxicity of the Five Mineral Powder’ which is in the Qian Jin Yao Fang ・ :
The revival medicine cold food powder or five mineral powder, according to old reports, were not known to recipe specialists, but (its use) began with the Marquis He after the end of the Han.
Since Huangfu Mi among those, who were tricked by this temptation, there were none, whose back didn’t inflame, whose bones didn’t disintegrate and who didn’t subject themselves to destruction. Since I can remember, it hasn’t struck only one from those who I knew, who came from the capital.
Su Shi (1036-1101) wrote in his memorial ‘The Memorial of Shangyang’ Lun Shangyang the following ・ :
It began with He Yan, that the people took stalactites and wushi (different word for fuzi: aconite), and gave themselves uncontrolled to wine and sex, to prolong their life. (He) Yan was in his youth rich and honored, how should one be surprised, that he took the cold food powder, to satisfy his desires? What he caused with that (that the powder spread), was enough to kill people and to destroy families. Every single day. How awful it is to die from the cold food powder - But what can I alone do? Those who take the cold food powder and whose backs are decaying (are so numerous), that they step on each other's feet!
Yu Zhengxie (1775–1840) wrote in his work Guisi Cungao the following, comparing the five mineral powder to opium ・ :
The nobles and dignitaries haven’t asked themselves if they have an illness or not, but it became fashionable with He Yan to take this drug without reason. The people of Wei and Jin took this drug and were not able to come back to their senses until the end of their lives...
The powder of Wei and Jin and the ‘pill’ of Tang and Song are the worst and are comparable with today’s opium. Under the Jin, Tang, and Song the governments, however, haven’t banned (these drugs), whereas today opium is banned; That’s how one can see that only the present government is handling the problem correctly.
The Recipe
First, we examine He Yan’s Five Mineral Powder Recipe, referenced in Sun Simiao’s (581-682) work Qian Jin Yi Fang, where mentioned in a note that if two components (sulfur and red clay containing silicon) are removed from the Wushi Gengsheng San recipe, you are left with Sanshi Gengsheng, Marquis He’s original recipe. The ingredients are listed here:
Zhongru (stalactite) 2.5 liang
Baishi Ying (milky quartz) 2.5 liang
Haige (oyster shell) 2.5 liang
Zishiying (amethyst) 2.5 liang
Fangfeng (Siler divaricum) 2.5 liang
Gualou (Trichosanthes kirilowii) 2.5 liang
Ganjiang (Zingiber officinale) 1.5 liang
Baishu (Atractylis ovata) 1.5 liang
Jiegeng (Platycodon grandiflorum) 5 fen
Xixin (Asarum Sieboldi) 5 fen
Renshen (Panax ginseng) 3 fen
Fuzi (Aconitum L.) cooked, with the removed shell 3 fen
Guixin (cinnamon tree bark from a smaller branch)
And very important is expensive wine.
As Wagner points out, his list of ingredients isn’t exact, because of the many variables the identification of those ingredients has (pharmacological variables, terms describing the ingredients, the provenance of the plants, etc.). But we can establish the most important ingredients: stalactite, aconite, and herbs such as ginger, ginseng, etc..
In Xi Kang’s (223-262) biography in the Jinshu 49, we see that stalactite could be consumed on its own ・ :
Xi Kang also met with Wang Lie, and together they went to the mountains. Lie found a stone, with the form resembling a sugar hat. Lie took half of the stone and gave the other half to Xi Kang. Both froze and turned to stone.
Donald Holzman, in his book La vie et la pensée de Hi K’ang identifies the ‘stone resembling a sugar hat’[4] as a stalactite, which is in He Yan’s recipe.
Little side note ‘turned to stone’ is indeed comparable with the slang ‘getting stoned’.
Pharmacological Effects
Before we turn to the preparation of the drug, I’d like to point out the fact that we only vaguely know what components lead to the psychoactive effect. Wagner wrote in his paper that he tried to have people knowledgeable in these regards, research with him, but it didn’t work out. If you want to learn more in this regard, I can’t help you.
Preparation of the Drug and Codes of Conduct
According to Huangfu Mi the minerals have to be prepared (I assume grinding it into a powder) and then they have to rest for 30 days. The plants are prepared on the day of ingestion.
The following texts are in Chao Yuanfang’s work Chaoshi Zhubing Yuanhuo and in Sun Simiao’s work Qian Jin Yi Fang ・ :
Those who take the Hanshi powder, take the amount of 2 liang, this amount is divided into three pastes.
At sunrise, he takes with hot, excellent wine the first paste. When the sun has moved one chang (meaning two hours), in turn, he takes the other paste. When the sun has moved a second chang, he takes the last paste, having used up everything.
After a while, he should wash his hands and feet with cold water. When the energy of the drug is working, one will feel numb. Thereupon he undresses and bathes in cold water. When the power of the drug gets stronger and the body is cooled, the mind opens to clarity, and one recovers from the hardships, even for those who lie weakened and suffering in their bed, it will improve before the day ends.
There are people of weak or strong constitution, and there is different tolerability of the drug for many. If the person using the drug is emaciated and weak, he can eat a little before taking the drug. But when the person is strong, he doesn’t need to eat...
One always has to dress cold, drink cold, eat cold, and sleep cold. The colder the better. If the drug didn’t had an effect yet, one shouldn’t bathe cold yet; if one bathes in this situation, it will result in a painful cold, blocking the drug’s effect, leaving the person shivering. Rather (if the drug is blocked) one should drink warm wine, jump, dance, and rub themselves, to achieve the effect, if one starts to get warm, then they should bathe. If the (situation where the drug hasn’t reached the effect) has been dealt with, one should stop and not overdo (the cooling). Also one should eat cold multiple times (a day), not only in the morning and evening. If one refrains from eating and getting so hungry, then it’s causing the person, to get cold, and only if he eats he will warm up.
The ingredients suggest a high content of calcium, explaining the feverish symptoms. For those symptoms of heat, it was also common to just remove the clothes and go around naked.
Further we are informed that 2 liang isn’t an universal dosage, about that Huangfu Mi writes, which is cited in Chao Yuanfang’s work Chaoshi Zhubing Yuanhuo ・   :
As far as seniors and children are concerned, who can’t tolerate (the normal amount, 2 liang) - here you can set the dosage under 2 liang. When the person is robust, you can set the dosage above two liang... Even though this medicine is excellent and can double the strength and spirit, it is indeed difficult to correctly dosage it.
Cao Xi (Yes from the imperial family) wrote also an explanation on the correct codes of conduct, which could criticize Huangfu’s suggestions which is quoted in Tamba Yasuyori’s work Ishimpo [5] ・ :
In general, one has to, when someone is taking the cold food drug, when it becomes too strong, consistently (focus on the condition) of the one taking the drug, and administer (fitting) healing recipes.
The body and liquids of the human flesh are (for different people) differing like earth and wind (as they are different in other places)Although it is said (by Huangfu Mi?), that one should drink wine, there are people who can do that, and those who cannot.
Although it is said (by Huangfu Mi?), one always has to stay cool, there are bodies of people, there are ones who can bear the cold, and those who can’t.
Although it is said (by Huangfu Mi?), one should eat and drink a lot, there are for food and drink different amounts (of digestibility).
Although it is said (by Huangfu Mi?), one should always exercise, there are different stabilities of the bone, ones who are strong and ones who are weak.
Because the people are thick and thin, old and young, have in their bodies illnesses or not, those who have much warmth and those who have much coldness, one cannot treat (the side effects) them with the same method.
A strong rise of the drug has many aspects and produces hundreds of illnesses.
As those symptoms can be useful in identifying anecdotes where someone is ‘under the influence’, as we turn to the next section.
The Stoned Nobles
Yes, Huangfu Mi called them “The Nobles turned to Stone”.
As it is mentioned the drug spread in He Yan’s lifetime and long after that. In the Guan Lu biezhuan there is instance recorded where Pei Hui asked his subordinate Zhao Kongyao why he isn’t looking well, Zhao replied ・ :”I have the misfortune, that no drug-minerals are remaining in my body.”
As Qin Zhengzu writes in his work Hanshi san lun ・:”Those who took (the powder), searched each others company.” The nobles of that time met in ‘drugparties’ which were most of the time called ‘wineparties’. The language describing those gatherings resembled those of wineparties. For example it is mentioned in the Jinshu 35 that Shi Chong (249-300) once wanted to sue Sun Lishu for not having acted according to the rites at his wineparty, but Pei Kai admonished Shi Chong by saying ・ :”You gave someone a wild drug and expect correct ritual behavior - isn’t that wrong?”
Then we of course have the parties by Cao Shuang, being prime examples of drug use. Of course the one mentioned in the Sanguozhi but also the one mentioned in Zhong Hui’s biography for his mother ・ :
At this time the Great General Cao Shuang alone held the goverment; he gave himself daily to wine until he became heavily drunk. The elder brother of Hui, the shizhong (Zhong) Yu told what happened on these parties. My mother (Zhong Hui’s mother) said:’ When they are having their fun, they are just having their fun, but it won’t last long. When those of high rank, aren’t arrogant and follow the rules and regulations, then they aren’t getting themselves in trouble. If they overdo it, a tragedy will happen. (Those who are in the government) have an excessive wastefulness. This is not the way to keep wealth and high positions’.
The seven sages of the bamboo grove were also known to be fond of the drug. We know of course that Xi Kang took stalactites, the other members showed also similar symptoms described in the following texts:
Wang Yin’s Jinshu biography cited in the Shishuo Xinyu ・ :
At the end of Wei, Ruan Ji drank heavily, neglecting himself completely, showed his hair in an unkempt state in public, and sat naked with sprawled out legs.
Liu Ling’s love for wine is well recorded, but we see him naked here as well, indicating of course this is a incident of drug use, it’s cited in the Shishuo Xinyu [6] :
Liu Ling was an inveterate drinker and indulged himself to the full. Sometimes he stripped of his clothes and sat in his room naked. Some men saw him and rebuked him. Liu Ling said, “Heaven and earth are my dwelling, and my house is my trousers. Why are you all coming into my trousers?”
Not only in the nobility was the drug popular, but emperors also took this. Emperor Huidi of Jin once had a party with youths of the nobility, it’s cited in the Jinshu 27 ・ :
Huidi hosted in the Yuankang era (291-299) a wine party with the high ranking and entertainment seeking youths (of the elite), they let their hair down and undressed in front of the slaves serving as concubines. Those who wouldn’t participate in it fell from grace, those who rejected it were criticized. Only a few nobles wouldn’t participate in it because of embarrassment, and they were presented as they would lack reverence (towards their ruler).
Interesting to see that not only the use of the drug only had a small opposition, but those who refused to participate in those drug parties were put under pressure. It was not only Huidi of Jin who used the five mineral powder but also emperor Tuoba Gui who personally beat those to death who argued against his drug use and displayed their corpses in the ‘hall of heavenly peace’.
After the fall of Western Jin the nobles took their drug culture with them south, as it is described in an anecdote with ‘The Eight Da’ which is cited in the Jinshu 49 [7]:
Humu Fuzhi, Xie Kun, Ruan Fang, Bi Zhuo, Yang Man, Huan Yi and Ruan Fu were sitting together naked and with disheveled hair in a closed room; they had already been drinking for several days. (Guang) Yi (Humu Fuzhi’s protege whom they had not seen for years, arrived and) was about to push the door open and to enter, but the guardian did not allow him (to come in). He thereupon stripped himself outside the door, put off his hat, (crept) into the dog-hole and looked at them, shouting loudly. (Humu) Fuzhi was startled and said:’Other people definitely cannot do so. That must be our Mengzi (i.e. Guang Yi)’. He immediately called him in, and together with him they (went on) drinking day and night, without stopping. Their contemporaries called them ‘the Eight da’.
The Five Mineral Drug and Women
Wagner comments on the question if women took the drug as well, that they were only sexual objects or musicians. They were not members of the circle who took them for psychoactive purposes.
But that doesn’t mean they didn’t consume it. Certainly, they didn’t participate in parties like the scholar gentry, but they used it like most as medicine. In Chao Yuanfang’s work Chaoshi Zhubing Yuanhuo [8] it says:
When a pregnant woman catches cold and suffers from serious pain in her body, and she cannot be moved because of her condition, taking a dose of Cold Food Powder in warm wine and having a cold bath can do her good. After this, if she feels numbness somewhere on her body, the area should be washed with cold water, if she feels cold, drink some doses of wine...
Considering the fact that He Yan ignored the drug’s intended purposes, it is probable that not all women of that time weren’t so strict on using it purely as medicine either.
Also worth mentioning is that women took other substances like cinnabar, in the tomb of Wang Danhu 200 pills were found, which contained cinnabar. Cinnabar was mainly used in alchemy to either achieve immortality, or immortality of the corpse (to preserve it). But in the Tang dynasty, it replaced the five mineral powder, for it was also psychoactive.[9]
Five Mineral Drug and the Common People
To clarify, the five mineral powder was a luxury commodity. The powder itself wasn’t cheap and you had to mix it with expensive wine. There were no people who could profit from peasants getting addicted, there was no point in getting someone addicted to a substance he couldn’t even in the slightest afford. The five mineral powder was in every aspect a status symbol.
And because it was a status symbol people who couldn’t afford the powder would feign to suffer from the side effects of the powder. An anecdote from the Taiping Guangji 247 states ・ :
In the Northern Wei under Xiaowendi (reg. 471-500) the princes and high dignitaries, in high numbers, took the mineral drug, they were called the Shifa, for those ‘where the mineral drug is coming up strongly’. However, there were also people, who had a fever but were not rich and high standing, but also claimed they took minerals and that the fever derived from that. Contemporaries frequently suspected that those people imitated the looks from the rich and high standing.
There was once a man who lied down in front of the gates of the market and with all seriousness assured, that he had a fever so that the people congregated around him to take a look at him. When his companion wondered (about his simulation), he told him:’The drugs are coming up strongly (I am a Shifa).’ His companion asked:’When did the high lord take the minerals?’ The man replied:’Yesterday evening I bought rice, in it I found a mineral; That one I ate and now it is coming up too strongly.’ Everyone started laughing (because the effect of the powder starts immediately, exposing himself). Since then there were only a few, who pretended to suffer from the drug.
Effects of the Five Mineral Powder
As mentioned five mineral powder was originally used as a medicine, but through He Yan, it was used as a lifestyle drug. It was recommended to be used for everyone, literally everyone. Embryos, children, adults, seniors, healthy people, sick people, weak people, and strong people. And it seems that it was not just recommended in treating every disease you might have, but also to achieve godly abilities, good looks, a lucid mind, strength and of course using it per se was a sign of extreme wealth.
Shi Huiyi (372-444) wrote, which is cited in the Ishimpo by Tamba Yasuyori ・:
The five mineral powder is among the supreme drugs. One can excellently prolong their life, nourish life, and bring harmony to one's intellect. How could (one say) that the drug can only heal illnesses?
Cao Xi wrote, which is cited in Qin Zhengzu’s work Hanshi san lun ・ :
Those who are in today’s high rank, see the basic recipe of the drug and are calling out:’This is the divine powder, with which you can hold on to your life.’ And then comes the day, where they are taking it, undress, stand in the wind and pour cold water over them.
Side Effects of the Five Mineral Powder
Wudi sent an urgent message, in which he demanded that Huangfu Mi accepts a government post. Mi answered with a submittal, referring to himself as ‘the hidden one in the grass’: ‘Since I am weakened and emaciated, I am unclear about the direction of the way. Because of my illness, I removed my hairpins, my hair is (dense) like a forest... My humble self has nothing excellent about me, I cause catastrophe’s and seek my ruin, in fear of my serious illness. Half of my body is already numb, and my right leg couldn’t support myself for 19 years. I also take the cold food powder drug and missed and confused the codes of conduct; my pain (caused by this), my suffering, my bitterness, and my sorrows last for seven years. Even in the coldest weather, I undress and eat ice, and when summer comes, it is unbearably warm, and I am shaken by the coughing. At times I am exceedingly feverish, at times I have the coldest chills; Pus is running out my ulcers, and my arms and legs are heavy. In the meantime, my suffering only got worse, as I am gasping for my life...
In the Jinshu 51 ・ Huangfu Mi describes his ailings caused by the drug, in a submittal, hoping to avoid office. He took this drug in hopes to cure his old disease (most likely a stroke), but only worsened his overall condition. As Huangfu Mi describes further implications, cited in Chao Yuanfang’s work Chaoshi Zhubing Yuanhuo ・ :
At times hands and feet hurt, and all joints want to loosen(?). On the body ulcers, form and knots raise. One sits at the bed and sits for a long time, without moving. Extreme heat is everywhere on the body and collects on one point. At times there are hard sores. When it gets worse, they turn to ulcers. When one recognizes that, the person has to wash it with cold water and rub a cold stone (over the sores). In an easy case the sores disappear after a short time; In the worst case one has to pour water over it for a few days without pause, and then it will improve. When the person has been watered for a while, he will recover eventually. But when the bumps are getting bigger and there is no improvement, one should take a knife whetstone and hold it to fire until it glows, then throw the stone in bitter wine. When the stone is in the bitter wine the stone shatters. Thereon one should grind the stone, and apply the stone mixture to the ulcers; When it has been done three times it will improve. Then one takes big worms from the toilet, grind them, and warm them up and apply the mixture to the ulcers, also that is not necessary to do more than three times, and then the healing is improved.
Huangfu Mi doesn’t write where the ulcers form but it is highly likely that they form on the back. Su Shi writes of decaying backs and according to Huangfu Mi, a son of Wang Su (195–256), Wang Liangfu, died because ‘ulcers ate his back away’.
Of course, the well-known side effect is getting feverish but there are far more, according to Chao Yuanfang’s work Chaoshi Zhubing Yuanhuo other side effects include ・ :
Swelling of the stomach, until it wants to explode
Inflamed buttocks
Stabbing pain in the heart, like needles
Dizziness, frequent falling
Pain on all limbs
Difficulty to urinate
Difficulty to defecate
Stiffening of the joints, until one cannot move or stretch
Defecating without knowing
Pain in the eyes, like needles
Tinnitus and liquids exiting the ear
Pain in the mouth, tongue is tensing, and the mouth getting so dry you can’t eat
Rotting of the testicles
Sweating secretion under the arms and ulcers (on the lymph nodes?)
Hypersomnia without being capable to wake up oneself
Swallowing a cough up, leading to an injury to the throat and to bleeding
The feeling of cold and heat change for months
Screaming loudly with a wide openend mouth and with wide openend eyes
Blindness
Insomnia
Stiffening of muscles and skin, until they are dry and feel like wood
Tendency for the eyes to pop out
Some of them can be deadly. But next to the physiological side effects, there are also the psychological side effects. Huangfu Mi writes the following, cited in Chao Yuanfang’s work Chaoshi Zhubing Yuanhuo ・ :
In general, those who take these drugs, when it came up too strongly, even when they are usually intelligent, they are getting dumb. When they are abandoned, they won’t get better. The number of those who died isn’t comprehensible. In general speaking for the stoned nobles, there are ten wrong attitudes (before ingesting the drug): 1.That they are starring angrily; 2.That they have fears or worries; 3. That they cry; 4.That they suppress defecation; 5. That they suppress hunger; 6.That they suppress thirst; 7.That they suppress heat; 8.That they suppress cold; 9.That they overexert themselves; 10.That they are sitting stiff and don’t move When one is against these ten wrong attitudes, one has to, when one wants to raise the effect of the drug, but is already stiff, always has to relax and bring harmony to the limbs; also one cannot read bitter things and not think of something worrying. If one is capable of doing that, the drug won’t come up too strongly and everything will better
If you fail in getting relaxed, similar to LSD, you are getting a ‘bad trip’. Huangfu Mi writes, which is also cited in Chao Yuanfang’s work Chaoshi Zhubing Yuanhuo ・ :
One time I felt like that, when I was sitting in front of my food and tears just kept falling. I took a knife and wanted to kill myself, but was unable to go through with it because my family noticed and took the knife away. I retreated, checked myself, and forced myself to eat and to drink cold water, after that the (desperation) stopped. That it didn’t come to a tragedy, hang on a single thread.
Wang Wei (398-425) once treated his brother with the five mineral drug, but he passed away as a consequence. Wang Wei blamed himself and wrote in a letter which is cited in the Songshu ・ :
In the past year, the powder came up too strongly; on the climax tears came to my eyes, day and night without stopping
And of course, we have Tuoba Gui, when he started taking the five mineral drug his reign was considered ‘a bad trip’
Everyone was aware of the side effects, but they didn’t attribute that as an inevitable consequence but as a case of an overdosing. It was considered safe to use as long as it was used correctly. How it was considered safe to use knew no one.
First Aid In Case of Overdose
At times it can happen, that one falls unconscious and doesn’t recognize people or circumstances. If one (wants) to move its mouth, one can’t open it. The ill person doesn’t know himself and relies on the help of others. In this case, it is necessary that one takes hot wine, for it now depends on his life. But if he can’t drink (the hot wine because of the stiff mouth), one has to kick his teeth in and force the wine down his throat. When the throat is blocked, and the wine flows out, one should not stop (pouring it in). When (the wine) flows out again, one should pour it again and repeats it for perhaps half a day. When the wine gets down, he will regain conscience, but if one stops, without the person drinking the wine, one kills the person.
This is a recommendation by Huangfu Mi cited in Chao Yuanfang’s work Chaoshi Zhubing Yuanhuo ・, it is probably self-explanatory that kicking the teeth of another person while unconscious, will at least provoke animosity, especially when the person unconscious is of higher rank like Pei Xiu. Huangfu Mi writes about his death in Chao Yuanfang’s work ・ :
Pei Xiu from Hedong took the drug and missed the codes of conduct. But because he attained the rank of Sangong, no one dared to force him to treat the (side effects of the drug). He was already beyond the stage of confusion, so that he wasn’t able to realize (what should have been necessary to do), and no one in his entourage knew how to help him. The treatment they chose for him was (giving him instead of warm wine, which would have been correct), letting him drink cold water and rinse him with cold water. When they used hundreds of shi of water on him, the cold became too much and, he died in the water.[10]
If one takes ten shi of glowing coal and pours over them 200 shi of cold water, the glowing coal will go out. Although the heat (caused) by the drug was great, it isn’t as great as the fire stemming from 10 shi stone coal. If one pours the person without interruption, the cold will be enough to kill him.
Later his son Pei Wei wrote a memorial, which you can find in the Jinshu 35, urging to correct the scale of the imperial physicians to prevent overdosing. He didn’t explicitly mention the five mineral drugs, but his background and the massive prevalence of the drug should be good indicators.
Lethality of the Five Mineral Drug
Those who survive (the intake) the longest, live for a few decades; those who live the shortest, only for five to six years. Even though I myself still see and breathe, (is that what I say), only the laugh of a drowning man.
Huangfu Mi’s description of the lethality of the drug cited in the Chaoshi Zhubing Yuanhuo ・. He also lists people who died from the drug in the following:
More and more people took this powder and refused to stop, at time, including myself. Although violent effects were not common it could take a man’s life. One of my cousins named Changhu, suffered from atrophy of the tongue almost shrunk back into his throat; Wang Liangfu of Donghai country suffered from ulcerative carbuncles on his back; Xin Changxu in western Gansu Province suffered ulceration of his back muscles; Zhao Gonglie in Shu County of Sichuan lost six of his cousins to it. All these sufferings were caused by taking cold food powder. Among these, some were quite elderly and some still young, only 5-6 years old. Though I have seen this and sighed at it, I am just like a single drowning man, laughing at those drowning. Yet patients will not take a warning from this, and stop themselves.[11]
Notes
[1] All of Huangfu Mi’s works about the five mineral powder, are only existant in citations in the Chaoshi Zhubing Yuanhuo, the Hanshi san lun and the Ishimpo.
[2] The translation of Cao Shuang’s biography was made by @xuesanguo​. You can read it here.
[3] This translation I found in Guan Lu’s wikipedia page. It basically says everything Wagner has translated. But I only know for sure in this passage, I don’t know if the rest is correct.
[4] I couldn’t find a whole translation of this passage, but in Google Books the translation for Wagners ‘sugar hat’ (in German ‘Zuckerhut’), is in other versions ‘sweet meat’ or ‘cakelike stalagmite’. I personally think ‘sugar hat’ fits best.
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[5] Cao Xi was the son of Cao Hui, Prince of Dongping. After the establishment of Jin he was made Duke of Linqiu. His works about the powder were also lost to time and ony citations in the Ishimpo and in the Hanshi san lun survive. Also to note the Ishimpo, which was written in around the year 984, was the first medical text in Japan.
[6]This translation is in the book World History, Volume 1
[7]This translation is in the book The Buddhist Conquest of China: The Spread and Adaptation of Buddhism in Early Medieval China by Erik Zürcher
[8]This translation is in the book History Of Medicine In Chinese Culture. Important to note is that Chao Yuanfang hasn’t quoted neither Huangfu Mi nor Cao Xi, so it could be his own recommendation, which was then followed in the Sui dynasty.
[9] For more info on Wang Danhu I recommend Entombed Epigraphy and Commemorative Culture in Early Medieval China by Timothy M. Davis, Landadel - Emigranten - Emporkömmlinge: Familienfriedhöfe des 3.-6. Jahrhunderts n. Chr. in Südchina by Annette Kieser, and Emigrantenfamilien der Östlichen Jin-Zeit  im Spiegel ihrer Gräber und Grabinschrifttafeln also by Annette Kieser.
[10]The Jinshu says he drank cold wine, not cold water. In this case the Jinshu is correct, he should have had warm wine, but he was given cold wine.
[11]This translation is in the book History Of Medicine In Chinese Culture.
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beneaththebrim · 3 years
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hi brim! i've been meaning to start something by meng xi shi! between qq & ws, which one did you like better??
Hi anon!
I personally prefer Qianqiu. It is also set before Wushuang.
Now, full disclosure, I can’t say anything for sure, because I haven’t finished either (despite having begun mtling other novels...).
I feel like Qianqiu’s plot is a bit tighter--Wushuang is longer and more episodic/’villain of the day’ (although there is an overarching villain who employs the smaller villains), whereas Qianqiu seems to have a pretty clear narrative arc so far. I think the plot often feels more compelling to me in Qianqiu because it’s set during a period of instability preceding the Sui Dynasty and the protagonists are free agents, whereas Wushuang is set at the beginning of the Sui and the protagonists are employed by the Emperor to preserve the dynasty. The stakes in Wushuang don’t feel quite as gripping to me as those in Qianqiu.
The relationship dynamic in Qianqiu is also a bit more to my taste--it’s like, sexy evil cynical asshole/strong-willed optimist who is inexplicably drawn to said bad boy (well, bad uncle more like, Yan Wushi’s pushing 50) (Shen Qiao is a little over 30, fyi) (they’re both older than they look, being master martial artists). Yan Wushi likes to tease Shen Qiao, and Shen Qiao will snark about him in his head, but largely tolerate the teasing (when another person harasses him, Shen Qiao straight-up castrates him, whereas when Yan Wushi harasses him, Shen Qiao pushes him away at most). I like seeing how they influence one another, but still remain at core themselves. I love how Yan Wushi is just kinda unapologetically evil, but can’t resist Shen Qiao’s goodness, and I love how Shen Qiao appears soft on the surface but has just the most steadfast backbone.
Wushuang’s relationship dynamic is martial arts genius shameless peacock/cold-hearted sickly scheming genius. Both are equally ruthless, and are employed by rival secret organizations set up by the Emperor and Empress, respectively. If you like snappy banter and enemies to lovers, you’ll like this couple. Personally, although I find their dynamic super hilarious and entertaining, I can’t quite feel the heat and tension between them. I feel like this cartoon sums up the appeal of their dynamic though.
As you can see on novel updates, 65/128 chapters of Qianqiu have been translated, and 175/187 chapters of Wushuang have been translated. So, if you’d rather read something that’ll be complete soon, definitely go for Wushuang.
Qianqiu also has an audio drama which is in its second season. I’m caught up with season 2 episode 7 I think (which I wanna say is probably around the 80s in the novel)? I use chrome’s ‘translate this page’ function to read the subtitles--pretty understandable, all in all, probably because the language used in dialogue is easier for mtl to parse than poetic descriptions of sword fighting :P The audio drama is very good!
There are also plenty of things the novels have in common, (good, bad, and mixed):
Starting with the bad (for me at least): Most of the shippy-type things (ie kisses) that happen during the main stories are dubcon if not outright noncon. Also both stories are pretty firmly pro-empire (Wushuang more overtly)
Could go either way, depending on the reader: Both are pulpy wuxia. They don’t try to transcend the genre or anything like that. It’s fun! It’s not super deep!
Good: Meng Xi Shi writes a wide variety of fantastic female characters. Actually, that’s true of side characters in general--they’re all compelling and three-dimensional. Both couples have solid lives and careers outside their lovers. The fight scenes are excellently composed.
so yeah, those are my takes!
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