#i do think it's a little bit unfair to wen ning | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

flyndragon · 2 years

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One of the biggest problems with any half-serious reconciliation between WWX and JC is the fact that WWX's post-canon family, the ones he now loves as much if not more than JC, all have reason to loathe and mistrust the latter (LWJ - look at canon, LSZ and WN being the 'leftovers' (JC's word) he wanted put down and whose entire family he voluntarily led and contributed the most to slaughter. I don't think any of the three would 'ban' a detente but they couldn't possibly want JC (cont)

2/ in THEIR lives and why should they? WWX wouldn;t ask of of them. So how do you think the WWX and JC would manage to connect - just at Koi Tower? JL would probably like that, and it would respect WWX's other loved ones' feelings and history.

Anon, first of all - thank you for sending me my first ask? I am very much not an expert on anything mdzs, and have only written one (arguable) meta on why I like a ship. I haven't published any fanfic (due to my own insecurities, not necessarily because I don't write it, lol) on this topic either.

But, if you really want my little opinion about it, I can give you a couple thoughts! In a list, because that's how my brain functions.

1. Lan Shizui - He is going through a time after canon, but that is completely disconnected to JC! He probably has very few thoughts about the guy post-canon other than the fact that one of his adopted dads really doesn't like the guy.

He basically is rebuilding his identity as a Wen and learning more about them (implied by his post canon road-trip with WN) and is going to be busy reconciling this new identity he may have suspected was missing but didn't know about with his identity as a Lan. Jiang Cheng wasn't the only person at the siege! LQR and LXC were there too!! That's his uncle and (essentially) his grandpa! I think he's going to be way more preoccupied with the deep emotional issues from that than he will from any interacting WWX does with JC

And we also have to question how close is he with wei wuxian post canon in our fanfic. I know we as the fandom and fanfic authors love to make them act as a father and son, completing, along with LWJ, a nuclear family. But LSZ has lived the vast majority of his life without any idea he had a connection to the yiling patriarch! They share a cute moment at the very end, but he's off to find himself with WN. Lan Shizui has been raised by lan wangji and had wei wuxian as an occasional babysitter for 6 months or so when he was four, and he only has barely started remembering that time in his life.

When I look at Shizui I don't think he has the power or desire to stop WWX from reuniting with his brother. And, even if he wanted to, I don't think any reconciliation would make a big enough impact in his life such that JC was 'forced' on him. Even if jiang cheng visited the cloud reccesses, LSZ is gone. And even if they were there at the same time, would they be forced to interact? The way JC is most likely to be 'in [shizui's] li(fe)' is through Jin Ling. Which isn't going to be affected by the relationship between wwx and jc.

2. Wen Ning - Admittedly, I am the least familiar with his character out of the three you cited. But, although his big snapping moment with the golden core reveal, I don't know how specifically afraid of or pissed off at JC he is post canon. I think he mostly doesn't like Jiang Cheng for emotionally hurting WWX more than for anything involving the Wen. WN participated in the war, he knows what JC went through. I think that if he sat down for a minute and contemplated the things he said at the reveal, I think he would know they were a bit unfair. If he is going to be angry at JC for the burial mounds siege, he also has to be angry with LQR, LXC, a lot of unnamed cultivatiors from every other sect, and most minor sect leaders. Along with anger for the previous major sect leaders who are now dead.

And he wasn't even at the siege.

I think that most of wen ning’s anger at JC is on behalf of wwx, who he feels was wronged by JC. So if wwx wanted to reconcile, I highly doubt WN would stand in his way. And again, as with shizui, I don't automatically think that wwx reconciling with jc means that WN is automatically going to be forced to interact with JC.

3. Lan Wangji - Why does lwj hate jc? Seriously. You said 'look at canon', and I agree, LWJ does hate JC in canon. and JC responds to that hate with hate. It’s not hard to nail down - LWJ hates jc because of wwx. because even though he was at wwx's death and knows that JC didn't actually stab his sword into wwx, he firmly believes that the actions JC took drove wwx to his death. Its the same reason he hates himself during the timeskip.

That, and LWJ is used to being the only petty bitch in the room (cloud recesses). He doesn't have the emotional insight to recognize that sometimes yelling at someone can be a sign of how much you care. They have different communication styles, and that mostly comes with lwj judging how jc interacts with wei ying. Though we, as the audience, with wwx's pov and our own insight, see they love each other, lwj cannot. So he thinks JC is just actually being mean for no reason.

But again, like WN, he is weak for wei wuxian. if wei wuxian chooses to have a better relationship with his brother, LWJ might protest but I think he would ultimately relent.

This will mean he might have to spend actual time with JC, but ... he's chief cultivator. He's GOING to have to anyway. Not to mention, it seems like he did anyway, judging by their junior night hunt supervision.

I don't think wei wuxian would mind their continued animosity. In fact, in certain scenarios, like their night hunt chaperone death glare match, I bet he'd find it kinda funny.

4. You seem to taking specific umbrage with JC calling the wen remnant 'leftovers', and believe that he specifically wants wen ning and wen yuan to die. You probably took this specific word from chapter 73 of the exiled rebels translation of mdzs. If you look a bit closer, you can also notice that JC's next line of dialogue "I doubt you'll even return all of them". He is making this argument because he wants the brother he loves to be safe and somewhere JC can protect him. He is, throughout this entire scene, pointing out that this is a political disaster and how this hurts both his brother and the jiang. and even then, he does NOT expect all of the wen clan to be returned. He is expecting Wei Wuxian to smuggle a few (or even a lot!) of them away - perhaps people like granny and any children?

Also, wen ning is a fierce corpse who just killed some dudes. Although he did so justifiably, he is still the sort of demon that cultivators kill all the time, and wwx hasn't shown that its even possible to bring back his consciousness. We know he will, but that’s a ridiculous idea to the average cultivator. JC doesn't think he's telling WWX to kill a person at this point but a zombie, which they as cultivators kill all the time.

5. But, in the end, should LSZ, LWJ, and WN all hate JC's guts and refuse to even look at his fucking face post canon - they DO NOT control wei wuxian. WWX has met someone and listened to what they wanted him to so when he wanted the opposite perhaps three times in his entire life. If there is a reason that he thinks he should go talk to his brother, if there is a reason he thinks he should go to lotus pier, if there’s a reason he thinks his brother doesn't hate him anymore and wants to have WWX in his life, WWX is GOING to GO. That’s just his nature.

(the reasons are obviously the territory of fanfic)

WWX respecting 'other loved ones' feelings and history' does not mean denying himself of an equally important relationship in his life. Maybe it means not taking them when he goes to visit JC (and yes, I mean at lotus pier). Maybe it means not talking about Jiang Cheng to them. But it doesn't mean abandoning any hope of ever having a positive relationship with his brother again.

Reconciliation is not about them. Its not about how much hurt JC arguably caused other people surrounding WWX. Its about these two brothers reconnecting with the last person from their family living.

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robininthelabyrinth · 3 years

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prompt: JGY working for JGS post sunshot is an elaborate scheme he and NHS cooked up one night and he is simply biding his time until JGS does something irredeemable he can report to NHS.

In Here, With Me - ao3 (chapter 2/3)

This is what I wanted, Meng Yao reminded himself at the ceremony where his father gave him a new name and he found out it was an insult.

This is what I wanted, he thought as he watched his father’s men slaughter innocents, acting on his order and at his command.

This is what I wanted, he thought as he was used as a pimp and procurer, as a punching bag for his new ‘mother’, as a convenient scapegoat – as even his proposed marriage was mocked and unreasonably delayed – as he was denied basic privileges and treated as little better than a servant.

Worse, in some cases.

This is what I –

“San-ge!” Nie Huaisang called out, waving frantically, and behind him Nie Mingjue looked default-face neutral but actually, if you knew him well enough, extraordinarily long-suffering. “San-ge! I want to talk to you! About important things!”

If you knew Nie Huaisang, you knew that important things, to Nie Huaisang, included pretty clothing, pretty accessories, pretty birds, pretty people, and spying.

Jin Guangyao put a smile on his face, and for the first time in weeks, actually meant it.

“Any time, Huaisang,” he said. “Why don’t you come inside?”

“I hate it,” he told Nie Huaisang, who was trying to look understanding but actually mostly looked smug. “I figure I have two options on what to do about that. Learn to accept my lot in life –”

“Or kill them all and take over?”

“…three options. I was going to say that I was thinking of accepting your earlier offer, but if you really prefer, that second option seems perfectly plausible –”

“No, no, it’s a terrible option,” Nie Huaisang said, waving his hands. “I mean, you’d have to keep it hidden that you did it, you’d spend all your life worrying about someone finding out about it, and anyway, Lan Xichen would be so disappointed in you. How could you live with yourself?”

Quite well as long as he never found out, Jin Guangyao thought, but he acknowledged that all those points were correct. Especially the one about not wanting to live in utter paranoia for the rest of his life.

“What’s your plan?” he asked instead.

Nie Huaisang smiled.

“I can’t believe you,” Nie Mingjue said when Jin Guangyao first arrived in the Unclean Realm for a visit to his sworn brother, mulling over his father’s order to find out anything useful he could about Nie Mingjue’s intentions, and the critiquing tone made Jin Guangyao’s back go straight with fear that he would find here only the same disdain as he found in Lanling City. “Why do you listen to Huaisang and not to me? It’s simply unfair.”

Right, Jin Guangyao thought, his shoulders loosening. Right. It’s different here.

“We speak the same language,” he said.

“What language is that?” Nie Mingjue grumbled. “Fan semaphore? Anyway, stop dawdling by the door and get in here already. I told the kitchen to make your favorites since I know you and he will be spending half the day drinking tea and plotting mischief.”

Jin Guangyao nodded, and in a moment of recklessness added, “Would you tell me what your plans are for the position of Chief Cultivator?”

“It should be abolished,” Nie Mingjue said at once. “Why do we need someone to boss us all around?”

A standard Nie Mingjue answer, Jin Guangyao supposed.

“And your next moves to accomplish that?”

Nie Mingjue blinked owlishly at him. “I’m busy rebuilding my sect,” he said. “I can worry about politics later, can’t I?”

Jin Guangyao sighed and went to talk to Nie Huaisang instead.

“The wonderful thing about da-ge is that he means well,” Nie Huaisang said. “The terrible thing about da-ge…”

“Is that he means well,” Jin Guangyao agreed.

“We could use demonic cultivation as a lever, no one likes that,” Jin Guangyao suggested, but Nie Huaisang shook his head.

“I’m planning on rehabilitating Wei-xiong,” he said. “And the Wen boy, Wen Ning – he was nice.”

“That seems unnecessarily difficult.”

“Just you wait.”

“Wait. We’re framing my father?”

“Don’t think of it as framing, san-ge! Think of it as allowing him the rope he can use to hang himself.”

“…has anyone ever told you that you’re ruthless, Huaisang?”

“Hmm. Da-ge, when fighting me for the last sweet. Does that count?”

“No.”

“…I take it back,” Jin Guangyao said, watching Nie Mingjue nurse his wounded hand and even more wounded pride after an abject loss at the dining room table. “Huaisang, you can have the last sweet, and also the title of ‘most ruthless’.”

“I told you!”

“Does that mean you’ll agree to my plan, then?”

“Don’t make me regret this.”

“I’m willing to play along with your stupid plan,” Nie Mingjue said, which came as a surprise to both Jin Guangyao and Nie Huaisang – not least of which because as far as Jin Guangyao knew, they hadn’t actually told Nie Mingjue what they were planning. “But I have some conditions.”

Jin Guangyao turned to look at Nie Huaisang, who looked as surprised as he was, and then turned to stare at Nie Mingjue’s retreating back: he’d only briefly put his head in to check on them in between other tasks, and as Jin Guangyao well knew, his schedule was packed – it was no surprise he didn’t stay.

“Does he know what the plan is?” he asked Nie Huaisang. “Or was he just guessing that he’d have a role to play?”

“I have no idea,” Nie Huaisang said. “Sometimes he surprises me.”

Jin Guangyao nodded thoughtfully. “We should go figure out his conditions,” he said, and Nie Huaisang nodded. “And also how he managed to learn about the plan, assuming he did.”

“What else could you be planning?” Nie Mingjue asked irritably when they finally managed to corner him. “I know what both of you are like, I know what your goals are; the rest of it all falls out quite naturally from that. Have you figure out yet how you’re planning on fixing the Wei Wuxian problem?”

“Setting up an opportunity for rampant heroics. He won’t be able to resist.”

Nie Mingjue nodded.

“What are your conditions, da-ge?” Jin Guangyao asked.

“Jin Zixuan doesn’t die if you can help it, and Jiang Cheng becomes Chief Cultivator if someone has to have the job,” Nie Mingjue said. “I do not want to get stuck with it, and anyway we’re getting him his head disciple back; he can deal.”

Those conditions seemed reasonable, although the Jin Zixuan bit might be a little annoying.

“And in exchange for that, you’ll play along?”

Nie Mingjue nodded. He had that long-suffering look again. “Just tell me what you need me to do.”

“A-Yao, you’re sure you really don’t mind?” Jin Zixuan asked a third time. “I’m sure this wasn’t what you thought you’d be getting when you were accepted to Lanling Jin –”

“What part?” Jin Guangyao asked. “Our father engaging in crimes and trying to blame me for them, no one believing him and deposing him as sect leader, or the fact that you’d like me to be sect leader for a few years while you focus on raising your children?”

“…all of that, really,” Jin Zixuan said. “Mostly the last one, though.”

“I promise I don’t mind at all,” Jin Guangyao said, and smiled.

On the contrary, he thought. This is what I wanted.

#mdzs #jin guangyao #nie huaisang #nie mingjue #jin zixuan #my fic #my fics #in here with me #yes it went up a chapter

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bloody-bee-tea · 3 years

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JC Love Month 2020 Day 2

Power and Pride

Day 2 of JC Love Month brings some fluff where the kids (mostly JL) tell JC that they admire him a whole lot, and even WWX is not exempt from that. Thankfully, that admiration goes both way.

Jiang Cheng isn’t quite sure how he came to feel like an outsider in his own home, but it’s happening, and his otherwise empty table is probably playing a big part in it.

Especially compared to the cramped one, where Wei Wuxian and his gaggle of ducklings are seated.

It’s not often that Wei Wuxian brings them around after a night hunt, but they were close to Lotus Pier and Wei Wuxian at least knows that Jiang Cheng would skin him alive if he did a job in Jiang Cheng’s territory and then didn’t even have the good grace to drop by.

It’s just a bonus that he brought the kids with him, because Jiang Cheng would never admit it, but he missed Jin Ling. It’s not often that he gets to see him anymore, not with how he’s now Sect Leader himself, and it’s good to see that Jin Ling still takes the time to do something educational but at the same time gets to spend an night with his friends.

And it only stings the tiniest bit that Jin Ling didn’t come to visit Lotus Pier before, but Jiang Cheng pushes that thought far, far away. It’s important for Jin Ling to spend some time with people his age, and not just his family.

There’s an especially loud laugh from Wei Wuxian to something Lan Jingyi said and Jiang Cheng almost feels the urge to go over there and sit with them instead of a few tables further away, but he guesses he would ruin the mood.

He’s not pleasant company, he knows it, and he would hate to ruin the good mood of the kids. They deserve some time to celebrate after their successful night hunt.

So Jiang Cheng sits alone with his tea, and keeps half an ear on the rambunctious group. It has to be enough.

“So, let’s say,” Wei Wuxian’s voice carries over and Jiang Cheng might listen in a bit more closely at that, because he still remembers that tone of voice and it promises mischief.

“Let’s say what, Senior Wei?” Ouyang Zizhen asks, leaning expectantly over the table.

“Let’s say you’d have to choose the most powerful cultivator,” Wei Wuxian says, a laugh playing around his mouth. “Who would you choose?”

“Easy,” Lan Jingyi immediately says and Jiang Cheng has to hide his snort in his tea.

He would always bet his entire fortune on the loudmouthed Lan to be the first to answer a question.

“Zewu-Jun,” Lan Jingyi then says, full of conviction, though he only gets surprised glances at that.

“Why him?” Wei Wuxian wants to know, and Jiang Cheng is unsure if he has a higher goal in mind with this question or if he is just playing around with them.

“Because he’s ranked first, of course,” Lan Jingyi confidently says, and Jiang Cheng has to admit it’s solid reasoning.

Zewu-Jun is still ranked first, despite the fact that he went into seclusion, and the list is not only about looks. It’s also about the level of cultivation after all, so Lan Jingyi made the easy, obvious choice.

“But I don’t think he’s the most powerful,” Lan Sizhui carefully says, clearly trying to not offend his friend and while Jiang Cheng admires the effort, he thinks it’s entirely impossible to offend Lan Jingyi.

“Then who do you think, huh?” Lan Jingyi wants to know, clearly more curious than offended and Lan Sizhui shrugs.

“Hanguang-Jun,” he says, very predictably if you ask Jiang Cheng.

Not that anyone seems to be even thinking of Jiang Cheng.

“How come?” Wei Wuxian questions and then he gets that dreamy look on his face that Jiang Cheng learned to abhor so much. “I mean, you’re right of course, there is no one with more power in this world than my Lan Zhan, but explain it?”

“No one with more power over your already limited awareness, maybe,” Jin Ling mutters under his breath and Jiang Cheng almost chokes on his tea when Wei Wuxian lets out an enraged yell.

There’s chaos for a while at the other table, because it seems like the kids are entirely too comfortable to roast Wei Wuxian over his sickeningly sweet feelings for Lan Wangji and Jiang Cheng is very content to stay out of that train wreck.

They do settle down eventually, and they even get back on track with the question.

“It should be kind of obvious,” Lan Sizhui says finally. “He is the Chief Cultivator after all, and that means he holds the most powerful position.”

It’s just as solid reasoning as Lan Jingyi’s pick had been but Ouyang Zizhen shakes his head.

“You all got it wrong,” he says and leans a little bit closer to them as if he’s going to tell them a secret. “The most powerful cultivator is of course the Ghost General!”

“He doesn’t even count!” Lan Jingyi cries out. “He’s a ferocious corpse, and not a cultivator anymore!”

“But you have to admit that he is more powerful than both of your picks,” Ouyang Zizhen says and Jiang Cheng forces to unclench his hand.

He is still repairing his relationship with Wei Wuxian, he gave up entirely on every reaching anything but polite distance with Lan Wangji, but he will probably forever have some animosity for Wen Ning.

In the very darkest hours of the night Jiang Cheng can admit that it’s unfair to hate Wen Ning like that, that he wasn’t wrong about what he said to Jiang Cheng during that cursed reveal of just whose golden core is inside of Jiang Cheng, but that is only in the dead of the night.

During the day, Jiang Cheng reserves the right to still be fucking mad at Wen Ning for accusing him like that when it was him, Wen Qing and Wei Wuxian who decided to go along with the medical procedure without even so much as asking Jiang Cheng about it.

It doesn’t change the fact that Wen Ning is a rather powerful being and Jiang Cheng would hate to have to go up against him if he’s really furious. Jiang Cheng is aware enough of his own strength to know that it would be a damn difficult fight; and he couldn’t even confidently say that he’d win.

“You all don’t know anything,” Jin Ling suddenly speaks up, and Jiang Cheng is moderately curious, he’s not going to lie about that.

Jin Ling doesn’t like Lan Wangji—Jiang Cheng is more than aware that it’s his fault—but he admires Zewu-Jun and he is starting to build something of a friendship with Wen Ning, so Jiang Cheng is honestly curious to hear who Jin Ling thinks of as the most powerful cultivator.

Not to mention that Wei Wuxian is sitting right there, and for all that Jiang Cheng wishes it would be different, he doubts that there is anyone who could match Wei Wuxian at his Yiling Patriarch high.

“Who is it then?” Lan Jingyi asks, chin stubbornly set and Jin Ling glares at him.

“The most powerful cultivator is of course my jiu-jiu,” Jin Ling says, absolute certainty in his voice and everyone goes very quiet as they dart glances at Jiang Cheng.

“Why do you think so?” Wei Wuxian asks yet again, but his voice is soft in a way that Jiang Cheng can hardly stand and he has half a mind just getting up and fleeing.

But then Jin Ling turns around to him and pins him with his look and Jiang Cheng stays right where he is.

He didn’t know his nephew had already perfected that glare.

“Because he survived,” Jin Ling says. “Because he lost his parents and his home, and then his siblings. He had a destroyed Sect and a tiny baby to look after and he did it,” Jin Ling says and Jiang Cheng can’t hold his gaze any longer, but Jin Ling mercilessly goes on.

“He rebuild his Sect; and not only that, but he made it the most powerful of the Great Four. He raised the kid, that wasn’t even his own, and all the while he still managed to get the respect of the people he leads.”

“Jin Ling, you are my pride and joy, but would you please shut the fuck up?” Jiang Cheng bites out, feeling just a little bit choked up, but no one is listening to him.

“And he did it all without his own golden core,” Wei Wuxian chimes in, voice still so horribly soft, “because he even survived losing it.”

“He did a decent job at raising the little mistress, too,” Lan Jingyi says and even though Jin Ling turns to glare at him, it’s clearly meant as very high praise.

“He doesn’t just have the respect of his people,” Lan Sizhui suddenly says and shrinks in on himself, just a little bit when Jiang Cheng starts to glare at him.

It’s still not enough to shut them all up, but Jiang Cheng has to try at least.

“They adore him; they love him so much, all of them, and it’s so easy to see, too.”

Jiang Cheng doesn’t think it’s easy to see at all, but Ouyang Zizhen speaks before Jiang Cheng can get a word in otherwise.

“Oh, yeah, did you see how they all practically light up when he walks through the market? And they all give him samples of their stuff for free, too, and not because they are afraid of him or they want to show off. They just genuinely want to show him their appreciation!”

“Ah, but that’s not a new thing,” Wei Wuxian says and smiles slightly. “People always fell over themselves to make Jiang Cheng smile.”

“That’s not true,” Jiang Cheng says, because he remembers the times he and Wei Wuxian went to the market.

The people fell all over themselves to please Wei Wuxian, not him.

“Don’t be stupid,” Jin Ling bites out, and Jiang Cheng is taken aback at how mad he suddenly seems. “Do you even know how often people ask me where you are when I go to the market alone? No one cares about me, they only want to see you. I bet it was the same with Wei Wuxian.”

“He’s right,” Wei Wuxian nods immediately. “I couldn’t take two steps without people crowding me in, asking where their favourite was.”

“Shut up!” Jiang Cheng gets out, though he’s aware that he��s blushing bright red.

He knows he has the respect of his people, but their love? He never dared to hope for that.

“So, yes. My jiu-jiu is the most powerful, because he survived all kinds of tragedies and still came out on top.”

“You’re right,” Lan Jingyi nods and then everyone is suddenly agreeing with Jin Ling.

Much to Jiang Cheng’s embarrassment.

“Shut up, all of you,” he snaps out, “you’re all wrong.”

“Get over here then, and tell us why,” Wei Wuxian very eagerly says and winks him over.

The kids make space for him immediately, and they are all looking expectantly at Jiang Cheng, too, so really. What else can he do but go over there and join them.

He refuses to think about the warm, fluttering feeling in his chest at the thought that he gets included in this.

“Tell us who you think is the most powerful,” Wei Wuxian says, excited like a little kid, and when he leans forward, Jiang Cheng pushes him away with a hand to his face.

“Hey,” Wei Wuxian protest, but the kids all laugh and even Jiang Cheng has to bite back a smile.

“If you think I’m going to name you, you’re mistaken,” he tells Wei Wuxian who gives him an almost devastating pout.

“But I was so powerful back in the day,” Wei Wuxian whines and Jiang Cheng rolls his eyes.

“And then you died, so really, how powerful can you be?” he wants to know. “And don’t even get me started on the fact that you made it back, because you had nothing to do with that! That was all Mo Xuanyu.”

Jiang Cheng is aware that the kids are staring at him and Wei Wuxian and it occurs to Jiang Cheng that they have never seen them banter like this.

Like they used to do before everything went to shit, and it gives Jiang Cheng hope that they can repair their relationship.

“But who else could it be?” Wei Wuxian whines as he slumps over the table and Jiang Cheng flips his forehead.

“Sect Leader Yao, of course,” Jiang Cheng says, smug as anything when he sees dropped jaws all around the table and then he laughs.

“No, no, you have to explain,” Jin Ling suddenly says and Jiang Cheng calms down just long enough to do so.

“Think about it. He’s mediocre at best but he’s still around. It’s been almost twenty years and he still aggravates everyone at the Cultivation Conferences. No one killed him yet and he still didn’t die. Clearly, he is more powerful than any of us.”

“That’s right,” Wei Wuxian gasps. “He survived the Sunshot Campaign, and I remember he was amongst those who called for my blood, too.”

“And then he survived all of Jin Guangyao’s scheming, and every fight that happened since,” Jiang Cheng adds and it’s only then that Jin Ling smacks his arm.

“Stop this, you hate Sect Leader Yao, you would never vote for him,” Jin Ling says and Jiang Cheng has half a mind to ruffle his hair.

“But I mean it!” Jiang Cheng says but now Wei Wuxian also caught on to the fact that he was just fucking with them, and he narrows his eyes at Jiang Cheng.

“No. Tell us the truth.”

“Fine,” Jiang Cheng says and rolls his eyes at him, mostly so that he doesn’t have to look when he says his next words. “I always thought that my brother was the most powerful,” he mutters and this time the silence that falls over the table is a very expectant one.

When Jiang Cheng finally does lift his gaze again, he sees that all of the kids are looking at Wei Wuxian instead of him, and so Jiang Cheng does the same.

“A-Cheng,” Wei Wuxian says and Jiang Cheng is startled to see tears in his eyes. “I love you, too,” Wei Wuxian cries out and then throws himself over the table to hug Jiang Cheng.

“Let go of me, you gremlin,” Jiang Cheng complaints, but he doesn’t push Wei Wuxian away as hard as he maybe could.

“I always thought my brother was the strongest, too,” Wei Wuxian then mutters and Jiang Cheng has to close his eyes against the sting of tears.

“Ah, fuck,” Jiang Cheng whispers.

“No swear words at the table,” Jin Ling says, clearly out of habit but also way too late, and Jiang Cheng is thankful for it, because it breaks the weird tension.

“There,” Ouyang Zizhen says with great satisfaction. “He did a very good job raising the little mistress.”

It sets off a new round of roughhousing, this time between the kids, mostly, and Jiang Cheng takes the break to compose himself again.

But when he catches Wei Wuxian’s still somewhat misty eyes over the table, he figures it’s not entirely necessary to be his usually grumpy self.

He can let loose a little bit, with his family around.

Link to my ko-fi on the sidebar!

#bt writes #jclovemonth2020 #the untamed #mdzs #jiang cheng #wei wuxian #jin ling #post canon #fix it #fluff #admiration #family feels

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bottomlwjrights · 4 years

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MO DAO ZU SHI REREAD:Thoughts™️....and Stuff

Chapter 7

Jin Ling! Okay the first time i read this i really didnt like him but ive warmed up to him with time

“The vermilion mark implied the meaning of ‘opening the doors toward wisdom and aspiration; illuminating the world with the vermilion light.’” I did not remember this, but cool.

Jl sure does have a mouth for a 13 year old. Actually on second thought, no,thats just what 13 year olds are like.

Lmao little apple has a lot more personality than I remember

Why did Madam Jin have to die??? Really why tho, cause its never mentioned she just dies for no reason

Almfnnkdb “do you have any last words?” Kandjf akdncj

Jc and jl look a lot alike, according to wwx

*insert jc hate here*

Jc has an unhealthy amount of hate for wwx, i think he should talk to a therapist about that

Bichen is beautiful

Bichen is not able to be wielded by the average person soooo, hear me out...post canon wwx cultivating a good new core, and fighting beside lwj with suibian and bichen....like they use eachothers swords OR....double weilding their own swords plus their husband’s

“He had an aura of smooth moonlight.” Wwx,sir, that is one romantic ass way to describe someone’s aura

“His skin was fair, features both refined and elegant, as if he was a piece of polished jade. The color of his eyes was especially light, like they were made of colored glass...His expression held the traces of frost and snow...”wwx, sir, that is one romantic ass way to describe someone’s physical appearance

“It was impossible to find any fault with his appearance.” WWX, SIR.....

“Although all of the clans in the cultivation world used extravagant words to describe ... Lan WangJi as an incomparable beauty who only appeared once in a blue moon, nothing could help the bitter facial expression that made him look as though his wife had passed away.” I....i um.... i cant 😢😢😢😢😢

Wwx pointing out both his “mourning clothes” and his bitter expression...i literally cannot handle this

Wwx you stupid motherfucker, you guys arent enemies

“Jiang Cheng was already exceptionally handsome, but as they [lwj and jc] stood face to face with each other, he still seemed a few degrees inferior.” Im just gonna leave this here, do with it what you will

JingYi, you are going to get yourself in trouble with that mouth be quiet pls

Wangxian using the silencing spell for....reasons

How tf you gonna say jin ling is turning 15...(edit:after someone graciously pointed it out to me, it actually makes sense for jl to be 14 going on 15....turns out I can’t do math)

Chapter 8

Jc and lwj have never fought eachother (with their swords,at least)

Jc thinks lwj could whoop his ass (hes not confident that he could win a fight against him)

“The voice[lwj’s]was deep and alluring. If one was too near, the tip of their heart would tremble.” Do i even need to say it? Also im [redacted]

Wwx feels really bad about the things he said to jl

I think its really unfair that everyone blames wwx for YanLi’s death, even himself, when she sacrificed herself to save his life

Wwx describes his new face as young, handsome, and graceful

....is Little Apple a normal donkey???

Wwx is so smart!!!! Ugh!!!

Chapter 9

Most people from GusuLan being at least a little bit germophobic is canon

I love this goddess

Wwx is very protective of the juniors even early on, especially lsz and jl

Wwx’s heart jumps at the thought of jl being the one who lost his soul

THE GODDESS FREAKING EATS SOMEONE I FORGOT ABOUT THIS WTFWTFWTF

Wwx: “im just gonna summon a little fierce corpse, any one would do” *the most vicious fierce corpse in all history (so far) shows up*

Wen Ning.... ily

#mdzs #mo dao zu shi #wangxian #mine #lwj #wwx #jc #lsz #jl #ljy #Phoenix rereads MDZS

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inessencedevided · 4 years

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The Untamed, episode 18 - watching notes

I know I'm slagging a bit. So sorry, life in quarantine is - somehow - busy. I want to watch the untamed all the time, but I just can't right now :/

Last on "Sophie wstches the untamed": Wei Wuxian is a self-sacrificing idiot but what else is new

Wei Wuxian, third young master, just used his cultivation power to catch a chicken

And icon

And now she's his hunting companion. I fully support them :Dh no, one of the wangxian mirror is hurt 🥺

But I'm glad he's back. I've been anxious to find out what will happen to them

Completely random, but I've just realized that apparently "Shifu" (please pardon my spelling) is Chinese for "Master". I knew the word from avatar the last airbender, but never knew that its chinese 🙈 (I realised this because Song Lan is repeatedly calling "Shifu!")

There is just something incredibly disturbing about people crying tears of blood

So wait, Xue Yang blinded him with some kind of poisonous powder?

Ooohhhh! I never realised that this legendary Master of wwx's mother and Xao Xingchen is a woman? (Or I did and forgot again)

(Sorry. The fact that there is such a disparity between the number of male and female significant characters on this show is maybe the only thing that's bothering me right now. I've seen worse on other shows though and the female characters that are there are great, so I'm not that bothered by it.)

Wen Qing is as much of a fangirl of the Baoshen Wanderer as I'd be :D

OMG they're going to look for her!!! Pleasepleaseplease let them find her! 😭

Also, the way wwx's whole face softens at the mention of some link to his parents 😢

Those needles going like 5 centimetres into Jiang Cheng's skull ... *shudders*

Turning serious for a second: I know Jiang Cheng is grieving right now, but even so, the fact that he can only see worth in either his live or his death if he is able to seek revenge is ... depressing. It says a lot about his source of self-worth, as well as how much he depends on some form of outside validation. Poor guy :(

Not done with my feminist bullshit yet: I don't quite know in what way it is significant, but I love the fact that in a setting where power is largely transfered from father to son or from (mostly) male masters to a largely male student body, our protagonist's powerful ancestors and grandmaster where women. His mother was a powerful cultivator, his father the servant. And his mother also learned from a female cultivator who seems to have acquired almost legendary status within this world. I can't help but think that this exemption to the rule is somehow linked to who Wwx is as a character. He's a trickster. He defies customs left and right and even though I don't know how yet, he will somehow go against the other clans in such a major way that his own sworn brother will find it justified to kill him. But he's still the protagonist. We're meant to root for him. I can't help but hope that in a setting so defined by rigid customs and traditions, including a patriarchal structure, this story will promote that those customs shouldn't simply be upheld for their own sake, that when they defy what is morally right, one should break and reform them. (Maybe I'm going too far with my analysis here, but that is both a feminist message and a very anti-authorotarian stance, the second of which is one hell of a statement in modern day china)

Why do I have a feeling that Wei Wuxian is promising too much? It would be way too easy if this worked :/

Jiang Cheng held his chopsticks the wrong way round 😭🥺

Jiang Cheng: "Tastes terrible"

Also Jiang Cheng:

I live for Wen Qing's silent disapproval

Wei Wuxian ...

He's still going to sacrifice his own golden core, right?

And he's not telling Jiang Cheng...

This is going to be one of those shows again where 90% of the conflict could have been avoided if people had just GODDAMN TALKED TO EACH OTHER, isn't it?

Why do I keep doing this to myself?

The way wwx and Shijie are remembering the home they have lost through food is so relatable, it breaks my heart 💔😔

AAaaawwwwww, oh my god!!!!

Little Wei Ying!!!! 😭😭😭

I did not expect this flashback but it makes me so happy!

I mean look at him!!!!

(Sorry for the shitty pic of my laptop screen but LOOK AT HIM! 🥺)

Shijie! 😍

To be fair to little Jiang Cheng, a kid that she wouldn't understand why he suddenly can't have puppies anymore

My heart ... 💚💚💚

Shijie has just always been there for both of them and holding them together. I can't 😭

Also little Jiang Cheng's "I'm sorry"! He just wants to be loved. Then and now :'(

I don't know, I'm just weak for characters that bear their inner child's pain into adulthood ...

Can you not give me wwx / jc brotherhood feels when I know for a fact where this leads??? 😭😭😭

"You me and Cheng, the three of us, we must be together forever and never ..." "never be parted." - *they immediately part ways*

I CAME HERE THINKING I'D GET MY HEART RIPPED OUT BY TWO GAY IDIOTS NOT BY A TRAGICALLY DOOMED FAMILY! THAT'S GODDAMN FALSE ADVERTISING!

sorry

don't lie to them you idiot!!!

We'll see song lan again, won't we? Cause I still don't understand what exactly happened to him and why

Also, I want to know what he originally wanted them to tell Xiao Xingchen 🧐

"None of them cherishes his own life." Wen Qing knows my pain

That was a hard cut to a battle montage ...

LAN WANGJI!!! 😍😍😍 I've missed you so much!

I'm still about confused about wwx's plan here

Not the goal, just the execution

That mountain shot with the bells is awesome!

Okay, I'm not quite sure what's happening here. This person might be the true Baoshen Wanderer. But I don't think so. I think it's more likely she is either Wen Ning or Wei Wuxian in disguise (I'm sure they could also alter their voice) and Wei Wuxian has not given up his plan to exchange his core for Jiang Cheng's

Either way it's just unfair that this is where the episode ends 😅

@sweetlittlevampire @fandom-glazed @elenirlachlagos @allhailthedramallama @luckymoony (hope you guys are doing okay 💚)

#the untamed #sophie watches the untamed #the untamed episode 18 #wei wuxian #wwx #lan wangji #lwj #(for like 2 seconds)#jiang cheng #wen qing #wen ning #jiang yanli

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crimes-and-gelato · 4 years

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Title: Never Empty of You Pairing: Lan Wangji/Wei Wuxian Rating: Teen Audiences Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24029869 Summary: Taking his tray of coffee and plate of sandwich, he searches for a place to eat his meal while he waits for his shijie, Jiang Yanli. That’s when he sees him. The guy he’d manage to get acquainted with for the last few days they’ve accidentally run into each other in the café. Lan Zhan. Fortunately, Wei Wuxian remembers his name. or the one where Wei Wuxian has been cursed **

‘I will love you if I never see you again, and I will love you if I see you everyday.’

-Lemony Snicket

The café is bustling with people for their brunch on an early Sunday afternoon. And Wei Wuxian should have expected this since it’s the weekend — and he forgot somehow — but still he can’t help but be put out about it since he favours this café so much. Not just because he often gets free cookies from his barista friend, Wen Nings.

All of the tables are taken, especially the ones on the outside since it’s one sunny Spring Day and everyone seems to want a patch of sunlight after the heavy pouring earlier last week. To be honest, he’s quite tired of the rainy weather as well. Water ghouls and ghosts are the most exhausting things to fight. Slippery little shits.

Not to mention the frigid condition they have to work with. It’s hard to move in wet clothes and how the cold somehow clings much closer to your skin, seeps deep into your bones. He’s not looking forward to more night huntings in this rainy season. But someone needs to accompany Jiang Cheng, his little brother.

Taking his tray of coffee and plate of sandwich, he searches for a place to eat his meal while he waits for his shijie, Jiang Yanli. That’s when he sees him. The guy he’d manage to get acquainted with for the last few days they’ve accidentally run into each other in the café. Lan Zhan. Fortunately, Wei Wuxian remembers his name.

He plasters a smile, feeling lucky that he won’t have to wait for so long for a table to clear up and heads to the other man’s table. It’s a four seater table, but somehow no one had asked to sit with Lan Zhan. He guesses it’s because the man looks frigid to most people: golden eyes all sharp, stony beautiful features, lips on a constant thin line. Wei Wuxian has nothing bad to say about him, except that he’s ridiculously cool which is a great envy.

Plus, when Wei Wuxian didn’t have a cable to charge his phone, Lan Zhan graciously offered his own cable. You really cannot judge a person by their exterior. Since then they’ve exchanged a few greetings here and there, they’ve managed to introduced themselves to each other, talk a bit about the weather sometimes, mentions their families and their jobs but not in details, just little informations; so you can’t really call it friendship, even when he somehow wants to.

‘Lan Zhan,’ he greets, grin all too big on his face, he knows, but he can’t help it. He feels calm around this man despite everything shit that’s happening in his life right now.

Lan Zhan looks startled to see him, putting down the scroll he’s reading.

Wei Wuxian doesn’t even comment on the scroll because who the fuck in their era would read a scroll? But of course, Lan Zhan does because he’s old school like that; he’s a historian, for crying out loud.

Sometimes, he wonders if Lan Zhan believes in the supernatural since there are lots of history books about them. The West has their stories of witches, whom they burned at the stake; there are records about monsters in other countries as well. But that’s not really the best topic opener, right? How weird will that make him seem.

‘Do you mind?’ He gestures to the empty seat. ‘There are more people today and —’

‘Go ahead,’ Lan Zhan replies immediately, cutting him off. He quickly fixes his scroll to make room for Wei Wuxian’s things on the table. In his hasten, he almost knocks his coffee cup over.

It’s the first time Wei Wuxian see him get flustered. He kind of feels bad about it now. Maybe Lan Zhan is not used in sharing table with people he’s not close with.

‘Uhm… You can tell me if this is making you uncomfortable,’ he assures him, ignoring the sad twitch in his chest. ‘I’m sure a table will clear up in a few minutes.’

‘No.’ For a second Wei Wuxian thinks Lan Zhan’s about to reach out to him, hold him in place to stay. ‘I mean,’ Lan Zhan clears his throat, ‘this is okay.’ He stares at Wei Wuxian with conviction. ‘I don’t mind. Not at all.’

‘Thanks,’ he replies, putting his drink and food on the table and taking the seat opposite to Lan Zhan. ‘I’m suppose to meet my sister but couldn’t remember what time she said it will be. I guess I got here earlier than our arranged time, and I have also forgotten my phone.’ He laughs deprecatingly. ‘I forgot a lot of things these days. And today seems to just be my most unlucky day.’

‘I’m sorry to hear that,’ Lan Zhan says sincerely, almost pained like he’s the one going through Wei Wuxian’s day.

He places the smile back on his face, uncomfortable seeing the other man upset on his behalf. It just doesn’t sit well with him, no one should make Lan Zhan unhappy. Ever.

‘Thanks. But it’s okay.’ He shrugs. ‘Things just happen sometimes. It’s no one’s fault. Although, people did say I was born under unlucky stars, which explains all the series of unfortunate events in my life.’ He sips from his cup. ‘But I think, everyone makes their own fate in the world, right? That’s why we have this life. It’s up to us how we live it.’

He really should stop talking like some cryptic fellow. Not that there’s anything normal about him since he hunts monsters and ghosts for a living. Who knew the supernatural phenomena in the modern world doesn’t cease with the course of time?

‘Mn.’ Lan Zhan nods, staring with those earnest golden eyes.

‘I’m sorry for disturbing you with my nonsense.’ He smiles, face slightly heating up on his sudden outburst. There’s just something about Lan Zhan’s gaze that gets under his skin. Not in a bad way, but in a good way which somehow is more worse.

‘I don’t mind.’ The Historian smiles, small but soft.

Wei Wuxian almost chokes on the piece of sandwich he’s chewing. It’s clearly unfair for Lan Zhan to be this attractive and to have him throw around smiles like those. It’s not safe for anyone’s well-being. He clears his throat and takes another sip of his coffee, looking at everywhere except meeting Lan Zhan’s ardent’s gaze.

Being known as someone who’s shameless, it’s the first time for Wei Wuxian to feel this unsettled around someone. It’s usually the other way around. He takes another bite of his sandwich, surreptitiously peering at the man over his lashes in some hope for answers as to why Lan Zhan has this effect on him.

‘You’re married,’ he says, surprise by the silver band on the man’s fourth left finger, but more importantly, shock with the dejection lacing in his voice. If Lan Zhan notices, the man doesn’t show, only traces the ring with his other hand.

‘Yes,’ Lan Zhan answers, elated but there’s a hint of misery he tries to hide. His golden eyes pierces into Wei Wuxian’s for a second before he avoids his gaze like he’s afraid of being read. ‘Loving him was the best choice I’ve made… Not that I can fix the time I’ve decided to, or which part of him made me fall so completely that I was already in the middle before I knew that I had started.’

A tight grip wraps itself around Wei Wuxian’s heart at the sudden confession. He didn’t expect it, let alone be the receiving end of them with Lan Zhan’s full attention on him: intense and warm at the same time. It’s like looking at the sun and not knowing whether to look away or bask in its heat.

There’s a lump on his throat that resembles envy, or it’s probably an evolve longing that had been sitting in his chest for some time now. Nevertheless, he pushes it all aside and plasters a smile.

‘That sounds very romantic.’ He clears his throat again to get rid of the unwanted obstruction in his windpipe. It’s probably a rouge sandwich piece that he almost choke on a while ago. ‘What a lucky guy.’ He sips his coffee again so he doesn’t add anything absurd like: I envy him.

Another trace of that small, soft smile paints Lan Zhan’s lips again. And Wei Wuxian aches to taste it, but he can’t; reminds himself that he’s better than that.

‘I’m the lucky one,’ Lan Zhan says. ‘And maybe that’s the reason why this is my burden to carry.’

Wei Wuxian wants to ask what the man meant, but Wen Ning arrives with a slice of Sriracha Sweet Milk Chocolate Tart. The barista smiles at the both of them.

‘I didn’t order that,’ he tells his friend, knowing Wen Ning’s probably saved him a sliced of his favourite dessert when their chef makes it.

‘Oh no, Wangji-ge actually ordered this one,’ Wen Ning informs. ‘This is the last slice actually.’ The younger man looks abashed. ‘I forgot to save some for you. It’s quite popular these days.’

‘No, it’s ok—’

‘You can have mine,’ Lan Zhan offers.

He turns to the him. ‘It’s okay,’ he assures. ‘I have it all the time. You enjoy it.’

‘I really don’t mind.’ He pushes the tart towards Wei Wuxian.

‘You don’t have to.’

‘I insist.’ There’s that small, gentle smile again and Wei Wuxian’s heart does this thing again like it’s about to rattle inside his ribcage.

This could go on forever, Lan Zhan looks like a stubborn fellow. And as much as it would be fun to volley the tart like this, it wouldn’t be good for Wei Wuxian’s sanity. Just how much more can he take of those sincere smile without coughing his heart out and offering it to this quiet, sweet man?

‘We can share it,’ Wei Wuxian decides, taking small dessert fork and cutting the tart in half. ‘There,’ he announces, proud of his messy handiwork and realising that Wen Ning has left.

‘I really don’t mind,’ Lan Zhan repeats, taking half of the tart and putting it on Wei Wuxian’s empty sandwich plate. ‘It’s your favourite dessert. Not mine.’

Lan Zhan ceases halfway, abandoning his action and pulling his hands away from Wei Wuxian’s space.

‘What did you say?’ He stares in astonishment at the man across him. He doesn’t remember sharing this information. Clearly, they haven’t discussed this topic, he’s certain. And Lan Zhan’s deer caught in headlights reaction tells Wei Wuxian everything he needs to know. ‘How do you know? Who are you?’

‘Wei Ying.’ It’s carefully spoken, like it’s safe in Lan Zhan’s lips, like it’s home there.

No one has ever said his name like that. He always prefers Wuxian because people tend to mock him by using his birth name like it’s a curse, sometimes dripping with sarcasm or disgust.

But Lan Zhan mutters it with reverence and adoration, it literally steals his breath because the last time someone spoke his name like that it was his late parents. And it’s been a long time since his heart felt this warmth of being seen and loved.

‘Wei Ying, please.’

A blurry set of memories passes by: a soft hand running through his hair while humming a song as he buries his face into someone’s soft clothed thighs, a kiss on the forehead with his name on their lips at the promise of breakfast, him pulling someone’s hand hurriedly as they tell him to be careful, a sound of someone quietly sobbing his name.

The chair’s legs make an awful groan as Wei Wuxian abruptly stands, rattling the contents of their table. He must have looked like a spook animal.

‘I can explain,’ Lan Zhan pacifies, hand in the space between them like he wants to close the distance but doesn’t do so. ‘Wei Ying.’ He sounds pained.

‘Shut up.’ He doesn’t yell, but it’s not quiet either. The harshness of his voice folds Lan Zhan into himself like he’s been physically punch; Wei Wuxian regrets it. But he can’t. He can’t stand the idea of Lan Zhan saying his name like that — like it aches, like it hurts to say. He gets it from everyone else, but not Lan Zhan. Not when he knows how beautiful his name could sound from those lips, coated with care.

He catches Lan Zhan’s devastated expression before he sets off to leave. Wei Wuxian knows that the grief he saw on Lan Zhan’s face will be added to his collection of nightmares.

His flat’s quiet, different from how his heart is racing and his ears are ringing. There are messy thoughts, and brief images that passes his mind which he could not remember. And weeks ago he made a joke about being forgetful these days when Jiang Cheng scolded him for being late.

But now, he thinks it’s not his normal case of forgetfulness. Something is amiss and he should uncover the truth quickly.

His phone rings on the coffee table. He ignores it as his memory takes him back to Lan Zhan’s pained expression.

God, he’s such an asshole sometimes. Maybe he should have let Lan Zhan explain. The man has been nothing to him but nice and polite. And it might have helped him understand why there are gaps in his memories lately.

But is he ready for the revelation if he did stay and demanded answers?

There’s suddenly a loud series of knocks on the door that pulls him from his thoughts. A part of him wants it to be Lan Zhan, which is surprisingly disturbing because he doesn’t know the man, and somehow the man in question knows him, quite intimately if those glances are anything to go by.

Is he somehow attracted to problematic people after all? Did he also forget that one thing about him?

There’s another series of knocks followed by a, ‘Hey, Wei Wuxian, open up!’ It’s Jiang Cheng’s voice. Three more loud banging. ‘If you don’t open up, I’m going to break your door!’

‘A-Cheng,’ his shijie’s soft scolding passes through. ‘A-Xian, please open the door. We have something to tell you.’

Getting up from the floor takes effort, he’s not even sure how he got there. Not that he remembers making his way home from the café.

‘A-Xian,’ shijie’s relief voice welcomes him as he opens the door. She immediately pulls him close into an embrace and he can’t help but sob at her sturdy presence, both physically and metaphorically.

Wei Wuxian clings to her like she’s the last solid ground he can stand on while everything around him crumbles. He’s never felt this lost since he was five, the very earth underneath his feet swallowed up by an abyss of uncertainty and nothingness.

He can’t imagine not knowing her and Jiang Cheng. They’re the only constant in his life after his parents’ tragic death. And later on his Uncle Jiang and Madam Yu’s death. These days he can’t even remember his mother’s face, but he’s got shijie and Jiang Cheng to share stories about the sound of her laughter, her corny jokes, and her soft reminders.

Life always take and take and take from him. First his parents, and then his Uncle Jiang. And because of their way of life, coming from a lineage of cultivators, he hasn’t kept anyone close. The three of them never had. They’re the only family they have.

And if he’s forgetting, will he also start to forget shijie and Jiang Cheng? Will he forget that they’re his family? Forget that there are people waiting for him. Forget that he’s got a home now.

Forget who he is.

Forget who he is and wander back to the streets like when he was five, newly orphaned and fighting with stray dogs over scraps of food.

‘I’m forgetting.’ He sobs into her arms, as she helps him sit on the couch. ‘Important things. And people.’

‘It’s going to be okay, A-Xian,’ she assures, rubbing soothing circles on his back. She always smells like lotus flower, a comforting scent that takes him back to easier times. ‘A-Cheng and I will help you.’

‘You know?’ He looks up to her, face all wet from crying.

Shijie only nods, cupping a his face softly. ‘We’ve told you twice so far, and somehow you still forget.’

Panic rises in his throat. Twice. They’ve explained this to him twice and he doesn’t remember. He tries to search his memories for hints that at least he can recall small bits of what he’s been told before. Only to come up with nothing.

Nothing. He can’t find anything.

‘It’s just a matter of time before we fix this,’ Jiang Cheng promises through gritted teeth, hands balled in tight fists. ‘That bastard Su She managed to hide quickly after putting this curse on you.’

‘Su She?’ The name sounds familiar but he can’t remember why.

‘Yeah, that defected traitor from GusuLan Sect,’ Jiang Cheng explains. ‘Lan Xichen said they’re already looking everywhere, but that rat had planned his revenge intricately which makes it difficult to locate him.’

‘Revenge?’ This is another news to him. Well, everything is.

‘You don’t have to worry about anything, A-Xian.’ Yanli squeezes his hand. ‘We’re going to find him soon.’ Her other hand that’s cupping his face starts to wipe away his tears. ‘Lan Wangji isn’t giving up. So are we. And so should you… You have to remain calm and safe, okay? That’s what you need to do.’

‘I think you need to come back home with us,’ Jiang Cheng says, leaving no room for arguments. ‘It’ll be safer for you to be around someone else while we solve this case.’

They haven’t lived together in years, Wei Wuxian remembers. His shijie is married to Jin Zuxian, a shipping company mogul who also came from a bloodline of cultivators although their clan had focused more on business rather than the supernatural world.

Jiang Cheng on the otherhand is currently living with his fiancé’s in the Lan’s traditional home in Gusu, Lan Xichen is running their family’s ancient bookstore under Lan Qiren’s watchful supervision. Wei Wuxian dreads the idea of seeing Old Lan Qiren every day with the senior’s strict house rules.

‘Uhmm… I don’t think Lan Qiren would appreciate my presence in his home,’ he reasons out, he’s not going to admit Lan Qiren’s 3,000 house rules scare him. ‘Maybe I can stay at Huaisang’s or Wen Ning’s.’

‘It’s good that you still remember that,’ Jiang Cheng jabs. Yanli scolds him silently with her eyes. Their youngest is always the best at stabbing someone where it hurts the most. He huffs. ‘Maybe you could stay with your husband.’

‘A-Cheng,’ their sister chides.

Husband. The word sounds so foreign but also not. Wei Wuxian doesn’t understand why it feels like that despite being surprise, once again, by this new information.

‘I’m married?’ He looks from one sibling to the next. His questioning gaze lands on his shijie last because Jiang Cheng is looking away, berated and guilty. ‘I’m married,’ he repeats to himself, can’t wrap his mind around it. ‘To a guy.’

Shijie squeezes his hand with both of hers. ‘Yes. And he’s a wonderful man,’ she assures genuinely. ‘You love him. And he loves you, too. So much.’

He can’t quite believe what he’s hearing. He remembers seeing his shijie’s pain in loving the arrogant peacock when they were teens, and promising never to love someone like that, never to give someone that power to hurt him. Then, there’s that darkness that follows him around ever since he was young, taking away everyone he had ever loved. Somehow there are still days he thinks he’ll wake up with his shijie and didi gone, just like everyone else. That’s his curse, Madam Yu said so as well.

Who could have been so unfortunate as to marry someone as tainted as him? All these years, he’d kept everyone at arm’s length, afraid that they’ll get corrupted with his misfortune. But someone was idiot enough to tolerate him?

Love. Not tolerate, a part of him whispers.

‘How come I don’t remember him?’ he asks, trying to find an image memory of him dressed in red decorated in gold. He should at least remember that, right? But all he recalls is his shijie’s wedding day, even Jiang Cheng’s engagement party. ‘Why can’t I remember him?’

There’s shijie’s soft assuring squeeze again. ‘It’s the curse.’

‘What?’

‘Su She cursed you to forget Lan Wangji,’ Jiang Cheng continues, still looking away to hide his grief underneath his angry tone. ‘That bastard wanted to hurt Lan Wangji, and used you… because he knew that you’re Wangji’s breaking point.’

Wei Wuxian squeezes his eyes shut because his heart is suddenly heavy with feelings he’s afraid may spill through tears. He’s not even sure why he’s affected this much when he doesn’t even know this Lan Wangji person.

But hasn’t he dreamt of being loved like that? Selfish as it may sound. He’s never been someone’s precious person before? The kind that could break someone. And now, he realises that he’s not very fond of being someone’s breaking point.

The siblings agreed that it’ll be safer and better if Wei Wuxian stays with his husband. It may trigger back his memories as well. Not that they’re optimistic about that one since only Su She’s blood could undo the curse.

Wei Wuxian insisted on waiting for Lan Wangji alone since he doesn’t want to worry his brother and sister too much as he tries to mentally prepare himself in embracing his decision. So, he paces back and forth in his living room with no lights on as he waits for Lan Wangji to pick him up to be brought home.

Home. Wei Wuxian’s home. Or used to be, but he can’t remember. Can he still call it home, then?

He looks around at his bare flat as he paces. The emptiness should have raised his suspicion that he hasn’t lived here in a long time. But he’s been busy forgetting and night hunting, and people occupying his time as if they’re trying to rattle his memory or trying to make him forget to question the little things he found weird after waking up from his accident two months ago.

That accident wasn’t a normal accident at all.

He runs a hand through his long hair. He needs a haircut, he thinks, trying to stir his mind into mundane thoughts rather than panic about meeting his husband he has no recollection of.

Maybe he should have asked shijie or Jiang Cheng to stay. Or for them to drive him to Lan Wangji’s house.

His home.

But he’s not a child. He doesn’t need coddling. He’s known these things happen to people like them who are cultivators. And especially, to him who’s born under unfortunate stars.

He wonders what kind of person Lan Wangji is, and why he let Wei Wuxian live by himself.

Oh, god, he thinks, what if he actually secretly hates me that’s why he isn’t with me? Why he left me to fend for myself? And his shijie is wrong about Lan Wangji loving him. Even that Su She could be wrong as well and he’s not actually Lan Wangji’s weak point. And Lan Wangji is just too happy to get rid of him without the messy bits because those Lan folks are always so polite.

His pacing fastens as his thoughts goes from one negative reason to the next. No one stayed before, so why would Lan Wangji do as well? Especially now that Wei Wuxian is a mess.

The sudden door bell makes him jump, and then frozen as he stares at the door. Maybe if he doesn’t move Lan Wangji would just leave and Wei Wuxian won’t have to know if he’s abandoned again. He can pretend he wasn’t.

‘Wei Ying?’

That voice sounds familiar and safe that Wei Wuxian unconsciously takes a step towards it. Maybe it won’t be that bad to be soothed by that person, who says his name like it’s precious.

‘Wei Ying?’

He takes another step. Then another. And then another till he’s by the door.

‘Are you okay?’

He touches the door faintly, afraid that the person on the other side would feel him reaching out and leave.

‘I’ll be right here, okay?’ A pause and a soft thud. ‘Take your time.’

Unable to restrain himself from going towards this person who promised to stay, who’s patient enough to wait for him, who says his name like it’s precious, Wei Wuxian swiftly unlocks and opens the door.

‘Lan Zhan.’ This once again is news to him.

The other man’s eyes are surprised and sad, but hopeful. ‘Wei Ying.’

‘It’s you,’ he mutters with disbelief, recollecting his conversation earlier with Lan Zhan about the man’s husband, who turns out to be him.

Loving him was the best choice I’ve made…

Someone choose him. This person choose him: messy, unfortunate, loud-mouth, annoying Wei Wuxian.

I’m the lucky one… And maybe that’s the reason why this is my burden to carry.

Lan Zhan. Sweet and kind Lan Zhan felt lucky to have him. Lan Zhan doesn’t blame him for being his weak point. Lan Zhan stays despite the darkness that follows Wei Wuxian around. Lan Zhan soldiers on and stays. Lan Zhan doesn’t leave.

He reaches out, hand slightly trembling as he grasp Lan Zhan’s upper arm to assure himself that he’s not dreaming, that someone did stay.

Lan Zhan feels solid underneath his palm. Warm. Real.

‘You’re really here,’ he mutters.

‘Mn.’ Lan Zhan nods, eyes never stirring away from Wei Wuxian like he’s afraid he’ll also leave.

They must have looked sappy and idiotic.

‘But why didn’t you stay?’ he asks, remembering his confusion from before. ‘After I woke up and lost all my memory of you?’

‘I thought it would be best for Wei Ying,’ Lan Zhan explains, voice cracking just a bit. He takes Wei Wuxian’s hand from his arm with his free hand and holds it with both of his hands, putting it against his cheek. ‘I didn’t want to part from you. Ever. But… for the next few days that you can’t remember me, you hurt yourself trying to.’ He sounds so dejected. ‘You went as far as to Empathy yourself and ended up fainting.’ He squeezed his eyes shut like he’s in pain simply by remembering the memory. ‘After that you went to coma for three days, and I decided it’s not safe for you to try to remember by yourself.’

Wei Wuxian’s heart aches at the sight of Lan Zhan’s worry and sadness. Lan Zhan doesn’t deserve to hurt like this.

‘It’s easier if Wei Ying doesn’t force himself to remember me,’ he tells Wei Wuxian, both of them recollecting their interactions at the café. Is that why Lan Zhan is always present in the coffee shop, because that’s the only place he can meet Wei Wuxian? ‘Wei Ying is unharmed and happy if he doesn’t worry about the curse.’

‘But what about you?’ he can’t help but ask, cupping Lan Zhan’s face when he notices the dark circles underneath the man’s eyes. Lan Zhan immediately leans into his touch, all stiffness gone replaced by weariness and relief.

‘Wei Ying is more important,’ Lan Zhan replies, taking a step forward as if he can’t help himself but be next to Wei Wuxian. ‘As long as Wei Ying is safe and happy.’ Determination fills his gaze, but tenses once again as if he’s restraining himself. And maybe he is because his touches sound like longing.

Wei Wuxian’s going to be honest and say he’s not sure how to love someone like Lan Zhan, or how to love at all. But seeing Lan Zhan’s tender yearning makes Wei Wuxian want to learn how so he can wrap this man with everything soft he can offer that sadness will never be able to touch Lan Zhan again.

He wants to promise that everything will be okay, but he’s not sure if that is true. Nothing is sure. He’s not even sure he’s going to be okay. But he wants to be, if that will lessen Lan Zhan’s burden.

‘I don’t want you to be unhappy to make me happy,’ he tells Lan Zhan, pulling his hand from the man’s face and putting it on his shoulder. ‘We can both find common ground. Maybe I can stop trying to forcefully remember you, as long as you can take me not being able to… It’s not fair to you, I know. But please don’t send me away any more.’ He doesn’t blush as he tries to look anywhere else but Lan Zhan, who is surprise. He pulls his hand completely, feeling weird and tingly by their contact when they’ve touched more intimately a while ago. ‘I like being around you… I−I… Wha−What I meant… What I meant was that, it might be good for me to be around you. To help me remember.’

Wei Wuxian’s brave enough to peek a look at Lan Zhan’s reaction to his statement. He expects to be met with anger actually, having promised nothing but still wanting to take and take from this generous man.

A small gentle smile graces Lan Zhan’s lips, liquid gold eyes swimming with adoration and relief. ‘Wei Ying being around is enough for me.’

He can’t help but echo the smile. ‘Okay.’ Relief floods him as well. ‘I’ll stay as long as you’ll have me.’

‘Forever,’ Lan Zhan confesses so genuinely it makes Wei Wuxian’s breath catch.

He wants to disperse the tightening emotion in his throat at the ardent declaration with a chuckle but all he can do is stare at this beautiful man with unwavering adoration that Wei Wuxian doesn’t feel like he deserves, but nonetheless he will try to be.

‘I hope you remember that vow when I annoy the shit out of you,’ he jokes instead because he might say something else like promise the same thing. And technically, he knows he has when they got married, but he has no memory of that. He can’t be too cruel to Lan Zhan and pledge something as heavy as forever when he doesn’t know him completely, when he doesn’t know how to love Lan Zhan like it’s the only thing in this messy world he’s certain about. He wants forever but the kind that they both agreed to and understand, the one they’ve promised together wearing red and gold surrounded by their friends and families.

Lan Zhan pulls him into a hug. ‘Is this okay?’ he asks, a hint of worry in his voice that he might be pushed away.

Wei Wuxian nods on Lan Zhan’s shoulder and wounds his arms around the man’s waist. He buries his face on Lan Zhan’s neck as he welcomes the smell of sandalwood. The scent settles him somehow, his brain whispering home.

‘As long as Wei Ying is Wei Ying, I’m always your Lan Zhan,’ he continues and melts into Wei Wuxian’s arms.

He embraces him tighter, liking the weight and warmth of Lan Zhan. ‘Lan Zhan?’

‘Mn?’

‘Why does everybody call you Lan Wangji?’

Fin.

#wangxian fic #wangxian week 2020 #wangxian #lan zhan #wei wuxian #lan wangji

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enbyleighlines · 4 years

Note

Thank you for your stories. I would like read about: wn & lwj - jeaulosy, yanli & lwj - friendship, jc & nhs - flowers. Again thank you for sharing those small ficlet.

You’re welcome! And thank you, anonymous friend, for all the requests. I’m going to be splitting this up into three separate posts, because I want to fill all of them.

Without further ado: Lan Wangji & Wen Ning: Jealousy

—

Lan Wangji has a bad feeling. He’s sitting at one of the window booths at a locally owned coffee shop. Wen Ning texted him last week, and asked to meet up.

This is unusual, to put it lightly. Despite having an overlapping friend group, Lan Wangji and Wen Ning rarely interact one on one. In fact, Wen Ning tends to actively avoid Lan Wangji.

Lan Wangji doesn’t have to wonder why Wen Ning avoids him like the plague. For years, Lan Wangji has been cold to Wen Ning, if not outright hostile. So Lan Wangji does not blame Wen Ning for wanting to stay out of his hair. On the contrary, that’s exactly what Lan Wangji had wanted, once upon a time.

The thing is, Wen Ning and Wei Wuxian are best friends. And Lan Wangji has envied that, ever since high school.

Wei Wuxian and Wen Ning’s friendship began in Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji’s second year of high school. Lan Wangji was still deep in denial about his feelings, rejecting all of Wei Wuxian’s desperate attempts to befriend him.

Wen Ning was a freshman, a year behind them, and new to the school. Quiet and baby-faced, he drew bullies to him like moths to a flame. After Wei Wuxian stood up for him the first time, making a grand scene in the cafeteria, the two became inseparable. Suddenly, all the teasing usually directed at Lan Wangji went to Wen Ning instead.

It was unfair for Lan Wangji to feel cheated. After all, he had been trying to get Wei Wuxian off his back for over a year. He was like a dog, selfishly coveting a toy he had once ignored. But envy has always been the hardest sin for Lan Wangji to ditch.

His jealousy only intensified with time. Wen Ning and Wei Wuxian went to the same college. They became roommates. They even went into business together.

It was petty, true, to resent Wen Ning merely for receiving the attention that Lan Wangji was too cowardly to admit that he wanted. But it was hard not to feel the burn of acid in his throat, whenever he saw the way Wen Ning tucked himself under Wei Wuxian’s arm, hanging off his side like a bur.

Of course, Wei Wuxian had many friends. It was the way that Wen Ning looked at Wei Wuxian that bothered Lan Wangji the most. Adoring, like Wei Wuxian was the center of the universe. It was like looking into a mirror. Lan Wangji would catch a glimpse of Wen Ning’s shimmering, lovestruck moon eyes, and see his own crush reflected back at him.

Except, for all his cowardice, Wen Ning was not afraid to let himself get close to Wei Wuxian.

But that was then. This is now.

Now Lan Wangji is twenty-six years old. Wei Wuxian is his boyfriend. They live together. They’re raising a child together.

Jealousy should be a thing of the past.

And yet.

Lan Wangji takes a sip of his hot green tea and waits.

He doesn’t wait too much longer. Wen Ning jogs up to the cafe, waving to Lan Wangji through the window before heading inside.

Lan Wangji bites back a scowl. Once, he could reassure himself with the thought that their crushes were equally doomed. After all, Wei Wuxian wasn’t interested in men. Neither of them stood a chance.

Obviously, now Lan Wangji knows that isn’t the case.

Wen Ning orders something at the counter and then comes to join Lan Wangji. He’s holding a cup of some sugary caffeinated concoction with whipped cream on top. It looks like the type of thing Wei Wuxian would like. Wen Ning sits, not so subtly avoiding eye contact.

“Hey,” Wen Ning says.

“Hey.” Lan Wangji doesn’t grant him more than that. The bad feeling in his gut begins to grow.

“How... are you?” Wen Ning asks.

Lan Wangji narrows his eyes. He does not appreciate all this tip-toeing around whatever Wen Ning wishes to say. So he answers, “I’m confused. Why did you ask me to meet you?”

“Ah,” Wen Ning sighs. He finally meets Lan Wangji’s gaze. “Right. Well, I wanted to discuss something with you.”

“Then discuss.”

Wen Ning winces. “This isn’t easy for me to explain,” he says, “I’d appreciate it if you’d hear me out.”

Lan Wangji feels a bit bad for being so aggressive. So he mutely nods.

“I don’t know if you already know this about me or not,” Wen Ning begins, “but I’m asexual. Aromantic, too, most likely.”

Lan Wangji blinks. He was not aware of that. He’s not sure what he’s supposed to do with this new information. Should Lan Wangji congratulate him on coming out? Or would that seem patronizing?

Thankfully, Wen Ning doesn’t seem to be waiting for a response. “I bring this up,” he continues, “because I feel— I think— Correct me if I’m wrong, but I always got the sense that you thought I was in love with Wei Wuxian?”

Wen Ning isn’t wrong, so Lan Wangji doesn’t correct him.

Wen Ning nods at Lan Wangji’s silence. “That’s what I thought,” he says, “So I want you to know that, however I feel about Wei Wuxian, it’s not romantic.”

Shame burns in Lan Wangji’s chest. Here he was, wasting his time being jealous of a man who was never even interested in Wei Wuxian. He wants to apologize, but he doesn’t know how to do so in a way that won’t make him sound petty.

“To be fair,” Wen Ning goes on, “I used to think it was a romantic crush myself. And I do love him, in a platonic way.”

Lan Wangji can do nothing but nod.

“That said,” Wen Ning says, “The main reason I’m here, is because I wanted to be completely honest with you.” He pauses, and his eyes dart to the side. “Do you know anything about queerplatonic relationships?”

Lan Wangji does not. He thinks he might have heard the term before, but that’s the extent of his knowledge. “No.”

“Well, they’re kind of what they say on the tin,” Wen Ning explains, in a nervous twitter, “They’re like platonic relationships, but a little different.”

That doesn’t clarify anything. Lan Wangji blinks. “What?”

“Ah, I’m not that good at explaining the concept,” Wen Ning says, “They’re kind of like a third option, for people who are aro/ace, and who want to be in a romantic relationship without the romance.”

Lan Wangji is trying to understand. He truly is. But he is still confused.

Wen Ning sighs. “Here’s how I think of it... it’s got the structure of a romantic relationship, but with the content of a platonic relationship. It’s a way for us to experience the companionship of a life partner without all the romance stuff.”

“Friendship?” Lan Wangji asks.

Wen Ning’s shoulders slump. “It’s like that, but more... structured. I’m sorry, that’s the only way I can describe it. Anyway, I’m trying to explain this because... I want to be in a queerplatonic relationship with Wei Wuxian!”

The rancid taste of vinegar rises in Lan Wangji’s throat. He tries his best to swallow it back down. He’s twenty-six. He can be an adult about this.

“I know it probably sounds weird to you,” Wen Ning starts to babble, “I don’t fully understand it myself. All I know is that I read a book about queerplatonic relationships and now I can’t stop thinking about asking Wei Wuxian to be in one with me!”

Lan Wangji feels the smallest tug of pity in his heart. “If you were in a queerplatonic relationship with Wei Ying,” he says to Wen Ning, “Would you... go on dates?”

Wen Ning flushes and fidgets. “Ah, maybe,” he answers.

“Kiss?”

Wen Ning goes pale at that. He shakes his head quickly. “Oh, no,” he says, “I’ve tried kissing someone before. It wasn’t for me. No offense, but... I don’t understand the appeal of kissing someone.”

Some of the acid in Lan Wangji’s larynx begins to subside. “Then no sex, either?” He guesses.

“Nope! Definitely none of that!”

“Holding hands?”

“Ahh... hopefully, yes.”

“Cuddling?”

Wen Ning squirms, but his small smile betrays him. “If he wants to...”

Lan Wangji stops his interrogation. “So far,” he says, “it does not sound like anything would change between you two.”

It’s true. Wei Wuxian has always been a tactile friend. He has had no qualms about hugging and cuddling with his friends in the past.

“That... might be the case,” Wen Ning admits, “It’s not that I want to do anything new with him. I just want... the label, I guess. I want to tell people that he’s my partner. And that I’m his.”

Lan Wangji raises an eyebrow. The way Wen Ning said that, it almost sounded... possessive.

“I know this is a lot,” Wen Ning says, “but I needed to tell somebody.”

Lan Wangji wants to leave this conversation. Even if what Wen Ning feels for Wei Wuxian isn’t romantic, it’s still... Well, Lan Wangji doesn’t know how to put it into words. And neither does Wen Ning, apparently.

The two men sit in silence for a moment. It’s clear to both of them that they keep misunderstanding each other, but neither knows how to fix that.

“I think... I’m just jealous,” Wen Ning speaks up, unexpectedly, “Everyone around me seems to be in a serious relationship right now. It’s like everyone is paired up, and I’m the eternal third wheel. And maybe I shouldn’t be complaining. I mean, I don’t experience romantic attraction, so it makes sense that I’m single. And there isn’t anything wrong with being single. But when I think about being single for the rest of my life... I feel lonely. Ever since Wei Wuxian moved in with you, I’ve felt...” Wen Ning trails off, and bites his lip, as if to keep himself from finishing the sentence.

“Ah.” Now Lan Wangji understands. It’s like a ray of sunshine piercing through a break in the clouds. He remembers how he felt, learning that Wei Wuxian and Wen Ning had rented an apartment together: Jealous. Lonely. Abandoned. “You miss him.”

“It’s stupid,” Wen Ning says, speaking with his eyes scrunched up, “We still hang out all the time. But I miss living with him. I miss eating our meals together, and I miss running errands together...”

Lan Wangji watches Wen Ning, and feels true empathy blossom within him. “It’s not stupid,” he argues, “Wei Ying... has a loud presence. He is easy to miss.”

Wen Ning’s eyes fly open. “Yes, you’re exactly right! The apartment feels so quiet now. It feels empty.”

Lan Wangji nods. Now they are speaking the same language. Though the flavor of their love for Wei Wuxian is different, the essence is the same. Wen Ning’s love is not the same as Lan Wangji’s love, nor is it the same as Jiang Yanli’s familial love for Wei Wuxian. But all of them feel the same depth of emotion.

“Give me time,” Lan Wangji says, “I need to... research queerplatonic relationships. But I will not stop you, should you bring it up with Wei Ying.”

Wen Ning’s eyes widen. “You’re— you’re serious? You think I should tell him?”

“Wei Ying would want to know,” Lan Wangji tells him. That much he can guarantee. “I don’t know if he will agree to be your queerplatonic partner. I don’t know what that would look like. But you may ask. I will respect whatever decision he makes.”

Wen Ning looks speechless with shock. To be fair, Lan Wangji has surprised himself, too.

“Thank you,” Wen Ning finally says.

Lan Wangji simply nods.

Both of them fall silent once more. The space between them is a little less tense, though. For the first time, Wen Ning and Lan Wangji are able to enjoy a comfortable silence together.

#asks #anon #anonymous #mo dao zu shi #drabbles #mdzs modern au #leigh’s writing #wangxian #ningxian

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dreamingsushi · 4 years

Text

The Untamed - Episode 31

I must say before I start watching this episode. I am so not ready for this. These reviews are spontaneous and I write them as I watch the episode for the first time. And I am pretty sure I will be in pain and will write it down there. Just as disclaimer, I don’t know what is going to happen next other than somewhere in the near future, we will get back to the beginning of episode one, so please bear with me if I judge a character wrongly because that is how they want me to see it like... right now as I am watching. Moreover, if I do criticize a character it doesn’t mean I don’t like that character or don’t understand why he/she acts this or that way. Now that has been said... I am getting ready for this torture.

The relationship between Ah Yuan and Wei Ying is so cute. Sometimes, I feel like if it was not for that little guy, Wei Ying would feel much worse than now. It’s giving him somehow a feeling of having a family, but also must comforts him in his thought of making the right choice. It’s also so very cute how Wen Qing likes to watch over Wei Ying taking care of that child. Truthfully, I really like that girl, she understands a lot more even though she doesn’t say much. She’s probably the one who understands most what Wei Ying have given up and probably feels bad for imposing on him so much. She’s the one to get the invitation that Wen Ning got from someone of the Jin clan and hands it to Wei Ying. When he knows that he can see Yanli again, his face... it’s filled with happiness. That’s probably the hardest part for Wei Ying, not being able to see her.

As he goes in town to buy a little gift for his nephew, people gossips about the baby and the fact that they invited over Wei Ying. A lot of people disagree. but that gift isn’t the real gift: Wei Ying carved each beads of a bracelet for Jing Ling to wear, that way it will repel ghosts and monsters. As Wen Ning is about to touch, he tells him not to, even for him this could be bad.

It’s mean cousin again. I know he has a name, but I can’t remember it. Anyways, as Wei Ying and Wen Ning gets close to their destination, he was waiting for them and almost killed Wei Ying with an arrow. Fortunately, Wen Ning stopped it right in time. That guy is so annoying. Oh god. So disgusting. What happened to that dude’s skin? Whatever that is, he definitely blames Wei Ying for it. And here, I love how Wei Ying is just like: who the hell are you? Do we know each other? I don’t even know you and if I wanted you dead, you’d be much uglier and everybody would know it was my doing. That’s pretty arrogant, but I kind of missed a little bit that side of him. However, that was probably not the smartest thing to say, but somehow, whatever he would say, that Jin guy wouldn’t even believe it. So he will fight with Wei Ying to kill him. Wei Ying being himself is like: oh well, since you really want to die that much, I will help you, it’s a pleasure. Gosh... That’s not what you should do right now... You’re here to see your nephew. Not to fight with those worthless people. Of course this means trouble... And then, Wen Ning take of his charms around his neck, probably to lock his killing instincts or whatever you want to call it. AND HE YELLS AGAIN LIKE THOSE UGLY KUILEI. The smoke was bad ass though. But the screaming... why would they make him do that... it doesn’t really make him look that much powerful. Or maybe he’s in pain for releasing all of this? And if that’s the case... STOP IT RIGHT NOW. Wen Ning’s my poor baby and leave him alone. He’s a nice guy, not his fault that he was brought up in the wrong clan...

While Wen Ning takes care of that army of small fry, that annoying cousin goes alone for Wei Ying and they fight. Which is pretty unfair since Wei Ying doesn’t wield a sword. During the fight, Wei Ying loses his gift for Jin Ling. Just then, Jin Zixuan comes to put an end to his cousin’s doing: he’s really mad. Sometimes, that Jin Zixuan really awes me. He’s probably the least despicable person from the Jin clan, if we omit how he treated Yanli before. Oh wow. Even Zixuan doesn’t think it’s Wei Ying who gave that cruse to his cousin. He’s really not that bad.

That ugly cousin. He reduced to nothing all the beads bracelet that Wei Ying spent so many nights to carve. In Wei Ying’s place, I would also be very bad and as he’s about to attack that ugly cousin, it’s Zixuan who stops him. Zixuan tells him to stop Wen Ning now so they can go ban to Jinlin tai and if really it isn’t Wei Ying’s doing, the curse I mean, then it’s nothing. But Wei Ying won’t stop first, he’s starting to think that they invited him over to kill him actually.

So then Wei Ying starts playing the flute. And then,... what is he doing? Wen Ning now has to irises. It’s so scary. Stop this right now, I don’t like this, unless it’s to make Wen Ning go back to his regular self, I don’t want to see this. Don’t use poor baby Wen Ning like he’s a puppet. He’s your friend. Would you do something like to Jiang Cheng? No never. I know Wen Ning will never replace him, but he has been true to you since the beginning, he deserves you treat him like a real friend, not just like an underling...

Oh my god. Wen Ning just killed Jin Zixuan. What the hell... That’s definitely not Wei Ying’s doing. I am pretty sure of that. He promised he wouldn’t do anything to Zixuan. And even so, I wouldn’t believe it. Yanli likes Zixuan so much and she has his kid now, Wei Ying would never do something to harm Yanli. And the look on his face. I never thought I would be crying over Jin Zixuan’s death, but I am. And as he’s dying, the only thing he wants to say, it’s that Yanli is waiting for him to participate in the festivities for the baby... ALL OF THAT HAPPENED BECAUSE OF THAT UGLY COUSIN. It’s obvious that that wasn’t what Wei Ying wanted to do. So either someone else used Wen Ning (but how?) either he doesn’t control his powers as he thought he was.

I think. This is the worst moment. When Wei Ying wakes up back at luanzang gang and kicks Wen Ning away, his eyes filled with resentment. Clearly it wasn’t Wen Ning’s fault, he was not himself back then and Wen Ning was the one to tell Wei Ying not to fight with Jin Zixuan. He wouldn’t have done such a thing willingfully. It hurts me such. I cried as loud as when I thought Wen Ning was dead. Why are they doing this to me? Why. Wei Ying even scared away the poor Ah yuan...

This is so sad. Wei Ying is now regretting leaving, he’s doubting that what he did was right and just then Wen Ning apologizes and says everything was his fault. And then... Wei Ying is thinking, is it really his fault? Did Wen Ning became like because he wanted to?

It’s like there is no answer to all Wei Ying’s despair. He doesn’t know what to do anymore, so Wen Qing and Wen Ning they... They are going to surrender themselves to the Jin. I cannot accept this. I can’t even see clearly as I write this. Wen Qing used her needles to force Wei Ying to lie down for a few days as she and Wen Ning are going to surrender. There’s no use in finding the culprit for the curse on Jin Zixun (the ugly cousin) because they are convinced now that it was Wei Ying’s doing and the world is too big for them to find the person behind all of this.

Wei Ying doesn’t want Wen Ning to go, none of this his fault. He says why should the weapon be punished and not the person who wields it? Wen Qing is slowly trying to convince him, but it’s not working as he knows that for them going to Jinlintai only means they will get killed. But Wen Qing says they should have died earlier, this is just what should have happened way before if not for him. He asks her to help him get up, but instead, she puts him to sleep. I don’t want this to happen. I don’t want them both to die. These two characters are some of my favorites... (ok, all characters from this drama are my favorites so far, except for Wen Ruohan, Wen Chao and Wang Lingjiao, Jin Guangshan and Jin Guangyao - I am trying to like him, I understand why he is the way he is, I pity him but... he has too much pride for me to be able to forgive him, he’s a liar and doesn’t mind hurting those who care about him to protect himself and then trying to deny what he did. I think I should make a post about all the characters from this drama, because it’s so hard to explain how I feel about them in just few words in the middle of my recaps, it’s too complicated)

Now that I have calmed down a little, that scene was way too much to handle for my poor heart, I left out so many important things.

Oh my god.

As I press play again, it’s the river of tears again. She lied to him. The whole group is going. They are all going to their death. Even small Ah Yuan. I don’t want to see this. This is so unfair, those people never did anything wrong in their life. And that is so stupid. By sacrificing themselves like this, they just throw away all of Wei Ying’s efforts for all this time. The other people from other clans still won’t accept him anyways. I thought Wen Qing was smarter than that.

When Wei Ying wakes up it’s only to find an empty Luanzanggang, with no one left. In despair, he runs away to try and save those he gave up everything for.

Honestly. I never cried so much in front of a drama. I almost choked myself because of my tears. This episode is just so heartbreaking. It took me hours to go through the whole thing. It was way too hard to watch. This episode really hurt me. I am very shaken and not sure if I want to keep watching something that puts me in such a state. However, I want to see Wei Ying’s name being cleared, I want to see more of Xiao Zhan’s and Wang Yibo’s acting, especially both of them together since they have such a great chemistry. I know that in the novel, Lan Zhan and Wei Ying are a couple and that in the TV show they are not, but... they did such a good job of making it unofficial. It’s like, the whole drama says they are not, but in the acting. Yes. I am not crazy when I see it. It’s so unusual for something like that to be aired in China when homosexuality is still something... homosexuals in China have a tough life. It’s still considered as something that can be healed. I am not going to give my opinion on homosexuality here because it is off topic, but also because it would probably offend some people and that’s not the point, but for something like that to be aired in China... I am impressed. And I am absolutely impressed by the actors of this drama who are doing such a good job, but not only them, the people dubbing, the producers, cameramans, writers, everyone. Maybe the people from special effects would have done better with a little more budget though (can I remind you of the dancing statue, the creepy wolf/dog and the turtle monster?), but overall, this drama. Yep. I have to convince the whole world to watch it. It’s so great. If you have any tricks to make people go over the first episode (you need to watch more than one to get addicted) please share. I want all of my sisters to watch this, even my brother (though it might be easier to convince my sisters).

And I am going to stop this right now. There’s so much I still want to say about that drama. Too much probably. I am usually only doing recaps for the episode, but I think I am going to post about every characters a little bit. None of these characters are simple, they are so well thought and complex. And I will probably write an overall appreciation post. Maybe try fan fictions sometime? I never wrote any, I don’t if I can, but Cheng Qing Ling really changed my life. I don’t know what I am going to do when I will be done watching. Maybe watch again until Wang Yibo’s new drama is out. Watch their interviews. Stalk all the cast. I need twitter and Weibo now.

Please, someone save me. By the end of the month, I will have the CD too. I think I will sleep with the ost playing. I almost know all the lyrics of all songs.

Send help. And tissues, because I am not done crying. Thank you for reading.

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multsicorn · 4 years

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[liveblogging The Untamed continues! Episode 45!]

[i am hoping to finish the show on friday, cause saturday I’ll be going to hang out with the group who made me start watching it...]

Not that much interesting happening in this episode, imo! But a few things:

I’m… confused? By the fact that it seems that still no one has told Wei Wuxian that Sizhui is A-yuan? I see why Lan Wangji might not have felt it was a good time when everything was being all dramatic around them, or when he and WWX had more pressing personal issues to deal with, but now, I’m just like… what. And how Wen Ning finally recognized him made no sense to me either…

But, nevertheless, I feel very fond about this found family kind of re-coming together! Even if the specifics of how are bzuh-inducing.

And i’m so sad for Wen Ning always being excluded as being not-quite-a-person, and/or too scary! Being a dangerous zombie ghost is not his fault! He’s a good dude! So loyal, so self-sacrificing, so unquestioning and uncomplaining… ah, I just really love Wen Ning.

On to! The most important things. Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji. I love how they’re always together, now, always standing by each others’ side. It could be protective - I have no doubt it is - but. also. It just reads: like they’re partners now. The two of them…. since that great declaration. They may need to figure out still what that looks like, but they don’t need a reason or an excuse to be together, or have to question whether they are. It’s just where they belong, where they live now. *heart.*

And they’re so drift compatible in every scene where they’re doing something, too, whether it’s fighting or interrogation or cultivation. They read each other’s cues quickly and accurately, and they trust the others’ decisions implicitly.

And! The most feelsy thing in this episode! Is Wei Wuxian coming ‘home’ to Lotus Cove. Or, more exactly, not being allowed to. The ache that it was his home, and the fact that he’s not wanted there anymore. The way this echoes with the fact that it was always not-quite-his home, that even when he lived there and belonged there most, (some) people always made sure that he knew that he was an outsider, that he was adopted, (fostered, taken in, whatever’s most accurate), that he wasn’t really legitimate.

Now… now, he aches at his home being denied to him. And he lounges about on the floor, not just cause he always does, I think, he doesn’t *always.* But in some sort of attempt to claim, to still feel, this is his home.

And then even though Jiang Cheng’s been horribly unfair to him (imo)… when JC softens just that little tiny bit, when he invites WWX to come in, then WWX is happy, and feeling so much from getting so little, it’s a relief, but it makes my heart hurt.

#the untamed #'i don't have much to say' she says!#*proceeds to write multiple full screens*#but i don't have any particular bits/conversations i wanna deep dive into more #is what i mean

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shinobi98 · 3 years

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I'vee written this from episode 29 through 32-ish and I want to dump a quick review of what I think of the characters at this point. Just for the lols for when I finish the show and I find I was completely wrong on most of them! Im using a compiled list on Google drive for the characters, so following that order they are split into clans.

Here we go.

Wei Wuxian. I really liked him at the beginning (what a funny cinnamon roll) but ever since he went missing into Burial Grounds I'm not sure...I see his points -especially when he criticised the Jins and stood up for the Wens- , but I can't believe he doesn't see he's being corrupted. Like come on. Just let the others help you for once, this is just looking for troubles. On thin ice. Used to be 9/10

Lan Zhan. Didn't like him much - or at all - when he was introduced in Clouds Recessess. I thought he was a stick in the mud and I wasn't too fond of him. He's missing for good chunks of the story. As my opinion of WWX deteriorated, I like him more or more because he's the one making sense out of the two, this gets him a passing score, even if barely. 6/10

Jian Cheng. He was my sweet sweet baby. Unparalleled sibling energy with WWX, cute angsty ship with Wen Qing, likable personality, the drama with the core. He had it all. But at some point...I don't know man. I just don't agree with anything he says anymore, and he's just becoming more and more sulky about his inferiority complex as a Clan Leader. I feel that, not counting the 16 years later part I didn't watch yet, he should get the title of co-protagonist rather than Wangji, since he's much more involved in the plot. Used to be a 8/10, still pending.

Jian Yanli. I like her. I feel like a dumb ass for getting attached and only remembering halfway through the flashback part that she's going to die, as per the first few episodes. I'm hating every second of it, like why killing her when the show is full of unpleasant people? Poor Li. Also the ship is a big plus. This kind of drama is just *chef kiss*- (and edit: after I watched the last episode of the night and she died...it's fine I'm not crying.) 8/10

Jian Fengmian. I don't really care much about him one way or the other. A little whipped by his wife - not that it is bad per se, but she really is bad so - , didn't particularly like that he favored WWX over JC. I think he could have been better, but he was pretty decent. 7/10

Madame Yu. No. 1/10

Lan Zichen. Possibly the last dude I 100% trust in this show not to let me down - as long as he isn't influenced too much by Mang Yao. I like him in a sort of uninvolved way. Don't look forward to see him on screen, don't wonder where he is or what he is doing, pleased when he shows up and does his sensible thing and then disappears again. Kept me on my toes after he escaped from Could Recesses though, but really took him so long to come back I almost forgot I was worrying about him. Way to go Zichen. 7/10

Lan Qiren. He's alright? I don't care much. Pretty dope when he took a stand against the Wans when they attacked, but I find him to be a little too much sometimes. 6/10

The files lists some juniors I haven't seen yet. They seem baby? Cute. I assume they are going to be so-and-so 's children, like in a Boruto way. Looking forward to see all the characters paired up.

Jin Guangshan. I thought he was annoying because he had a bunch of illegitimate children that I lost track of but then he became even more annoying with his very transparent power grab -and the fact that no one seems concerned is baffling to me. Overall I think I would have pretty much liked it more if the son Zixuan was clan leader and we didn't have to deal with this piece of work. 2/10

Jin Zixuan. As I was writing this post this man went through all sort of things. From proposing to having a child to being murdered. Honestly, we didn't start off the right foot when he booked the inn where WWX & co wanted to stay. I kept wishing he would kick the bucket because I hated how he treated Yanli, and I thought he would wind up to be a minor villain...while it seems he was the only normal member of his family. I feel bad for hating him so much. 8/10.

Jin Ling. Biggest reason why I thought his dad would be a bad guy. For the first part, I thought the Jins would be the villains because of him, and not the Wens, though in the end I wasn't that off the mark in a sense. He was just a cartoonish villain. I have yet to see him again after the flashback part, but his first introduction was awful. 3/10

Meng Yao. So the thing is, I was really partial towards him at the beginning. The bit at Cloud Recesses? The part with the Nie family? Perfect. Felt so bad for how everyone treated him. I started to excuse what he was doing like "it's ok, the head of guards is a dick to him" "it's okay he was double crossing the bad guys eheh" "it's ok he is...murdering civilians?" But seriously he let me down so hard. Also his face looks so different I didn't recognise him at first. At the beginning I thought I could maybe have a cute ship with Zichen but to tell the truth I don't want Meng Yao anywhere near him now. I seriously thought he wanted to murder infant Jin Ling at some point there to climb the ladder and become Clan Leader. I'm sure he set WWX up and schemed to murder the last dregs of the Wens and Zixuan. 1/10

Jin Zixun. Pretty inconsequential. Could have done with him imo. I'm only including him because I love when WWX goes "I don't even know who you are" like three times and that's a mood because where the heck did he come from.

Mo Xuanyu. I don't get why he looks like WWX. I sort understand why they used the same actor but story-wise I don't understand. How can random people look at him and recognise WWX? Also, he is kinda stupid for giving up his life to be possessed by a bad guy to get revenge but whatever floats your boat I guess. 4/10

Nie Mingjue. I don't care much for him. He bullies his brother too much and his short temper is annoying even though often justified. I thought I could kinda always rely on him to be the voice of reason despite not liking his character but then he said the stupidest thing in the show "I'm not sitting on that chair" and left it to the Jin Sect Leader...look how that worked out. Love how he basically disappeared after that, I think because he knew he screwed up big time (jk). 6/10

Nie Huaisang. Funny. Definetly underused. I hoped he would be part of the main gang. When he stopped showing up, the show took a terrible turn in its atmosphere. Please come back as sect leader in the 16 years later part (I mean, who else is there? I hope he didn't die in the meantime because he isn't showing up in this final battle). I wish I saw him swing a sword at the least once but alas. 7/10.

Wen Ruohan. I mean. What can you expect. Typical bad guy sitting on top of a lava pond that controls zombies. Wasn't expecting much development from his character and he surely didn't deliver. A good 2-dimensional bad guy to kill without thinking too hard about anything I guess. Awful person tho. 4/10

Wen Xu. I didn't even realize there were two young Wens. I thought he was his brother at first, but without the spice. Literally why was he there. 4/10

Wen Chao. He sucks, don't get me wrong. But watching him coming up with all sorts of awful things is very entertaining. 2/10 as a person, 9/10 as a villain. Cheered when he died.

Wen Lingjiao. Same as her lover, but more annoying because she got on my nerves sometimes. I was so glad when she got it. The (1) good thing coming out of WWX's corruption. 2/10

Wen Zhuliu. I really want to know what drove him to serve Chao with such devotion. His technique was kinda cool. I think he would have been an okay guy but sadly he associated with Chao. 4/10

Wen Ning. I thought "No, poor Ning is dead" ten times already and still counting. Please WWX just let him die. He is/was just a sweetheart and I loved him with all my heart. His death and everything that came after it filled me with rage, when i thought he died I was brokenhearted, and the fact that he gets blamed for killing people when it's arguably WWX's fault is so unfair. We didn't deserve Wen Ning. I don't really like that he became the Ghost General tho. 10/10

Wen Qing. I liked her. Same as her brother, how their story ended up upset me. I hoped they would get to live peacefully in their commune in the woods. That part of the story was *chef kiss*. The romance with JC lacked closure imo but I understand that they both had things going on and they would need to stretch the story too much to get the together or at the least talk about their feelings. I hoped till the end she wouldn't be killed because I knew Ning came bad 16 years later, so they must have avoided being executed, but more realistically I guess he's just a zombie and she's just dead. I lowkey shipped her with WWX though I feel this would be an unpopular opinion in the fandom -when I learned WWX has a different endgame ship I was kinda bummed sorry. I thought we would get a sort of love triangles with JC, I can't say I'm disappointed because it would have been a terrible plot. They really have a good platonic relationship, I loved to see them build that village. 8/10

Song Lan/ Xiao Xingchen / Xue Yang. What's the deal with them? They seemed to be set up to come back but only Song Lan does a passing appearance. Are they coming back? What was their significance? So weird because the untamed usually doesn't introduce characters to just drop them when the episode's over.

#the untamed #mszp

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robininthelabyrinth · 3 years

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Mo Xuanyu is banished from Koi Tower, but manages to take Wen Ning (or maybe a captured Nie Mingjue, your choice) with him. Now he has to figure out what to do with a well known fierce corpse. [🎶🎶 anon]

Crybabies - ao3

“Okay,” Xue Yang said, looking up at the ceiling with an expression that suggested he wanted to kill something and probably would, very soon. “What are you crying about now?”

“I don’t have any friends,” Mo Xuanyu explained. Xue Yang wasn’t allowed to kill him – Jin Guangyao said it would be politically inconvenient – so he felt moderately safe around the other man.

“What am I?” Xue Yang said. “Dirt?”

“Way too scary to be friends with someone like me.”

“…good point,” Xue Yang said. “You are kind of pathetic. A real crybaby.”

Mo Xuanyu was pretty used to statements like this.

“Actually,” Xue Yang said, and smiled. “That gives me an idea.”

Mo Xuanyu did not like Xue Yang’s idea.

“I don’t want these types of friends!” he wailed at the door, then, sniffling, turned around. “No offense meant.”

The two fierce corpses stared back at him.

“I’m sure you’re very nice,” Mo Xuanyu said, voice wavering. “Just very, uh…dead.”

Xue Yang cackled from outside the door. “I even took out their controls, just for you!” he sang out. “All the crybabies together in a single room. Have fun!”

And then his footsteps went away.

Shaking, sniffling, Mo Xuanyu turned to look at the two fierce corpses. It turned out they were chained to the wall, which was a bit of a relief.

“…are you the other crybabies?” he asked, curiosity temporarily overwhelming him. There was no one else in the room but them, but it seemed implausible.

Implausible, but apparently correct: tears started dripping down the face of one of the corpses.

“I want to go home,” he said, sounding genuinely miserable.

Mo Xuanyu looked at the other corpse.

“I want to go to his home,” he said, ducking his head and stuttering a little. He didn’t cry, but his eyes wrinkled up, like he wanted to but couldn’t. “It sounds nice.”

Mo Xuanyu had never heard of a home that sounded nice before.

“What’s it like?” he asked.

Mo Xuanyu really hated disappointing people.

It sometimes felt like he’d never done anything else: disappointed his mother when his father lost interest in him and stopped visiting, disappointed his aunt and her family by existing, disappointed his father after he turned out to be useless after he’d gone to all the effort of bringing him back to Lanling City, disappointed his teachers, disappointed his half-brother Jin Guangyao, disappointed – everyone, really.

So when he heard that he was probably going to get kicked out of Lanling, it wasn’t really a surprise. He’d long outworn his welcome, after all.

But then he also heard that they planned to send him back to Mo Manor and just – no.

He couldn’t.

He’d just have to disappoint everyone one more time.

“I’m pretty sure you’re not allowed to do this,” Wen Ning said, rubbing his wrists as if it would help return the circulation he didn’t have. “Friends or no friends.”

“They said I was going to have to go home,” Mo Xuanyu said, shivering from terror at the mere thought. “I don’t want to go back to my home. I want to go to his home.”

A-Jue wiped his eyes with his sleeve and sniffed. He was the biggest crybaby of the lot of them, but it wasn’t his fault; according to Wen Ning, he’d lost a big part of his memory and higher order thinking skills when he’d become a fierce corpse and spent any time that he wasn’t murdering people in a crazy frenzy of rage on Jin Guangyao’s orders at the mental age of about seven or eight.

It also didn’t help that, out of the three of them, he was Jin Guangyao’s favorite.

It was not a good thing, being Jin Guangyao’s favorite.

“We’re going home?” he asked, looking between them, watery eyes and all. “Will Sangsang be there?”

“Maybe?” Mo Xuanyu said, and looked at Wen Ning, who shrugged helplessly. Neither of them had any younger siblings, and Wen Ning hadn’t known anything about politics long before he’d died; he’d been in the dark rather deliberately. “Hopefully.”

“We should try to avoid being seen,” Wen Ning said wisely. “I have an idea.”

“This cart stinks,” A-Jue mumbled, knees pulled to his chest. Even folded up, he was nearly as big as Mo Xuanyu was stretched out. “I hate radishes.”

“I hate radishes too,” Wen Ning said. He looked like he wished he could cry, looking at them, but then again he looked like that a lot; he’d been the first one brought back, so he hadn’t kept the ability to actually shed tears, which was awful and unfair and something they’d have to fix as soon as they had some time and weren’t being chased.

“This was your idea,” Mo Xuanyu pointed out.

“I said it’d work, I didn’t say we’d enjoy it,” Wen Ning said, and Mo Xuanyu had to admit he had a point. No one would look for two fierce corpses and one runaway teenager in the back of a radish cart, and the farmer driving them in the general direction of Qinghe had been more than happy to accept some gold in exchange for not saying a word about them.

(“How d’you know I won’t take your money and sell you out anyway?” he’d asked before they set out.

“Because if you did, we’d prioritize ripping your throat out before we got captured?” Wen Ning suggested. Mo Xuanyu elbowed A-Jue, who obligingly stretched out his hand to demonstrate the length of his reach, the strength of his arm, and the length of his sharp nails.

“…good reason.”)

The ride only got them a day or so of travel north before the farmer had to make a turn that led him further away from Qinghe rather than towards, but they were in the countryside, not a city, and that was already something.

“We can make the rest by foot,” Wen Ning decided, and A-Jue put Mo Xuanyu on his back so that he wouldn’t slow them down. It was surprisingly comfortable. “I hope you’re right about your sect, A-Jue.”

“I am,” A-Jue said. “Sangsang will be there. He’ll know what to do.”

“Isn’t he only two years old?” Mo Xuanyu asked suspiciously.

“If I’m big, he’s big,” A-Jue pointed out. “And if I’m dead, he’s sect leader. It’ll be fine.”

Mo Xuanyu was nominated to be the one to go in and try to get an audience with the sect leader of Qinghe on account of him being the only one not dead.

It was a very compelling argument.

He got into the main city without a problem, gate or no gate, and then walked up to one of the guards outside the main clan complex. “Uh,” he said, fidgeting. “How do I get to see the sect leader?”

The guards looked at him in pity.

“Tell us what you want him for and we can direct you to the appropriate person to help you,” one of them said, not without kindness.

“I’m pretty sure the sect leader is the appropriate person, though…”

“Maybe you haven’t heard,” the other said. “But Sect Leader Nie isn’t actually good at anything.”

“I’m supposed to find him,” Mo Xuanyu said stubbornly. “Just him.”

“Kid. Listen. It’s not happening.”

Mo Xuanyu knew he’d screw this up. “Can you at least pass on a message?” he said hopelessly. “Tell Sangsang that I have something he’d be interested in –”

“Hold up,” the first guard said. “Sangsang?”

“…isn’t that his name?”

The two guards looked at each other. “Maybe you should go in,” the second one said.

“In fact,” the first one said. “We’re going to insist on it.”

“Please stop crying,” the young man with the fan and the frills said. “There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

“I’m under arrest!” Mo Xuanyu howled, tears and snot streaming down his face. “I’ve never been under arrest before!”

“I’m pretty sure that was just an overreaction,” the young man said soothingly. “They didn’t really arrest you, they were just being mean and exaggerating. Weren’t they?”

He looked at the two guards by the door, and Mo Xuanyu followed his gaze.

They both nodded.

“Sorry,” one of them said.

“Didn’t mean it,” the other said.

“Big mistake.”

“Won’t happen again.”

“Do you accept their apology?” the young man said, and Mo Xuanyu nodded. “Good, good. Now go – no, not you, them. You stay where you are.”

Mo Xuanyu sheepishly sat back down.

“Now,” the young man said, putting his elbows on the table. “You look familiar. Do I know you from somewhere?”

“Uh, maybe?” Mo Xuanyu said. “I was at the Jin sect for a while, but they kicked me out.”

The young man blinked, then his eyes narrowed thoughtfully. “Oh,” he said. “I see. No wonder you’re scared of getting arrested.”

Mo Xuanyu wasn’t sure he understood the connection. Wasn’t being arrested scary everywhere?

“Different question,” the young man said. He was playing with his fan in his hands and not really looking at Mo Xuanyu directly, which was a relief; it made him feel like the other man didn’t really care that much about the answer. “The Nie sect leader…who told you he was called Sangsang?”

“Uh,” Mo Xuanyu said. “It’s a bit complicated. You see, he doesn’t remember things very well, but A-Jue said –”

The fan snapped in two in the young man’s suddenly clenched hands.

It turned out that Nie Huaisang – that was the sect leader’s actual name – was just as much of a crybaby as the rest of them, which he really should have made clear from the beginning. Mo Xuanyu wouldn’t have been nearly as afraid of him if he’d known that.

As it was, he was still hugging a somewhat confused A-Jue (mostly marveling at how large his Sangsang had gotten) and crying his heart out while blubbering a whole lot of incoherent things, so Wen Ning patted the ground next to him and Mo Xuanyu went to sit.

“Is this a good sign?” he checked, and Wen Ning nodded.

“The Nie sect is pretty strong,” he said. “They’ll be able to protect us. Well, the two of you, anyway, I don’t know about me –”

“I don’t think surnames are really the most important thing right now,” Nie Huaisang said, finally pulling away and wiping his red eyes. “You helped bring my da-ge back home; you can stay as long as you like.”

“It really is a nice home,” Mo Xuanyu whispered to Wen Ning, who looked a little impressed.

“I told you,” A-Jue said proudly. He still had an arm wrapped around Nie Huaisang and wasn’t letting go – they’d offered to help Nie Huaisang out of his grip earlier, but he’d politely refused – and he seemed to be settling in very well to his older brother role. It was a bit strange to adjust to, but he was still A-Jue in the end. “I have the best home.”

“It’s nice enough,” Nie Huaisang said, still a bit teary-eyed. “Right. Enough feelings. I need you to tell me everything you remember about your time in Lanling.”

“…everything?” Mo Xuanyu said.

“Everything relevant,” Nie Huaisang clarified.

“You’re not going to like it,” Wen Ning said.

“Probably not, no. Tell me anyway.”

Mo Xuanyu patted Nie Huaisang on the back as he started trying to throw up again – it was all bile and dry heaves by now. It was a human failing that they shared, and the fierce corpses didn’t, although they were sympathetic enough.

“It’s not that bad,” Wen Ning offered. “We’re not really – awake, during much of it. The worst parts.”

That didn’t seem to help.

“He mostly only got mad at me,” A-Jue said, hovering anxiously. “He didn’t like that I didn’t remember him. Said it was no fun. So he didn’t spend that much time with me.”

“I hate him,” Nie Huaisang said. His voice was raspy, his eyes red, and he looked a little bit scary. “I’m going to destroy him.”

“Okay,” A-Jue said at once, because he was a big old softie as well as a crybaby. “We can destroy him. No problem. Just don’t be sad, Sangsang.”

Nie Huaisang’s lip trembled, which rather destroyed the scary effect. “Okay, da-ge,” he said. “I won’t be sad. You’re going to stay here at home with me, and then we’ll focus on making you better, okay?”

“Uh,” Wen Ning said.

“Not the corpse thing,” Nie Huaisang clarified. “The – memory thing.”

“You can fix that?” Mo Xuanyu said, surprised. “How? Senior Jin and Senior Xue both tried really hard and couldn’t manage it.”

“Yes, well,” Nie Huaisang said, and rubbed his eyes. “They don’t know that da-ge was a little kid the first time he picked up Baxia. I think that dying cut off his connection to her, and that she kept everything that was – you know – after. So maybe reconnecting them…”

“That means you’ll be grown up again!” Mo Xuanyu said to A-Jue, who seemed pleased. “That’s great.”

“I’m going to need your help, though,” Nie Huaisang said. He was mostly looking at Wen Ning. “No matter what da-ge says, you helped do – a lot of things, and if we’re going to bring down Jin Guangyao…I’m going to need help.”

“We’ll help you,” Mo Xuanyu said, and Wen Ning nodded. “I mean, we’re not – really helpful. We’re kind of all a bunch of crybabies. But whatever we can do, we will!”

“I appreciate that,” Nie Huaisang said. “Also, don’t underestimate crybabies.”

He smiled.

“We’re a lot more dangerous than you might think.”

#mdzs #mo xuanyu #xue yang #nie mingjue #wen ning #nie huaisang #my fic #my fics #crybabies #Anonymous

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robininthelabyrinth · 2 years

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Rugrats

- Chapter 3 - ao3 -

After they’d eaten and napped, they headed out, properly equipped and filled up with courage.

“No doubles are gonna get us,” Wen Chao said proudly, waving around his little wooden sword. Lan Zhan had painted talismans for all of them (cleansing talismans, but still!) and they’d all stuck them into the collars of their padded jackets, so everyone was feeling extra safe.

“Definitely not,” Jiang Cheng said, trying out a thrust with his own little sword and over-doing it a bit, but he quickly caught himself before anyone noticed him stumbling around. “We’re gonna be the ones to get them!”

“If we can find them,” A-Xuan pointed out, and that was a good point. “Do we even know where to look?”

“Sure we do!” Wei Ying exclaimed. “Wen Chao’s big brother got taken, right? That means they’ve got to have a nest somewhere nearby.”

“Just like with birds,” Nie Huaisang put in wisely. “If you want to find birds that eat fish, you go look for nests by the river.”

“Do the doubles eat people?” Lan Zhan asked Jiang Cheng in an undertone, looking a little perturbed. “I am uncertain whether my talismans are strong enough to keep people from being…eaten.”

“I dunno,” Jiang Cheng admitted. “But that can’t be right – they want to take your place, don’t they? To switch with you. And if it’s switching, it means both the original and the double have to still exist, or else it’d be stealing not switching – that’s why we have a chance at finding Wen Chao’s original brother again.”

“He was acting pretty nice earlier,” Nie Huaisang said, having clearly eavesdropped on their (not especially quiet) conversation again. Sometimes it was annoying not being able to hold anything against him just because he was the littlest little brother – he’d claimed it was a rule, and Lan Zhan had regretfully not memorized all the rules in his sect so he couldn’t say it wasn’t, even though he’d been suspicious about it, too. “When they were helping us find the jackets and swords. Maybe they haven’t got him all the way yet?”

“They’d better not’ve,” Wen Chao mumbled. “Why does there have to be a nest here, in my house? It’s so unfair.”

“That’s not quite right, though, is it? There’s one in Jinlin Tower, too…”

“I bet they’re probably everywhere. Like pests.”

“What’s a pest?”

“…dunno. Maybe like an insect or something? Oooh, or a beetle!”

“Beetles are the best!” That was Lan Zhan, surprisingly enough, so enthusiastic that he forget even his normal reserve. “I have to dig around all afternoon to find them – my brother keeps releasing my collection by accident…”

“You have a collection?” Jiang Cheng marveled. “Of beetles? My dad doesn’t even let me collect rocks!”

“That’s so cool,” Wei Ying agreed. “Beetles are really cool. You’re so cool, Lan Zhan!”

Lan Zhan ducked his head. “I had a pet spider once,” he admitted, and it automatically made him the coolest person Jiang Cheng had ever met. “It made webs in my window.”

“I don’t have pets,” Wen Chao complained. “I asked once, but my dad had visitors over and they made it weird.”

“How so?”

“Well, you know…”

What they knew was not explained, largely on account of Nie Huaisang interrupting to ask: “Hey, Wen-xiong, didn’t you say you and your brother were the only kids here?”

“In the main house, yeah, we are,” Wen Chao replied, looking puzzled. “Why?”

“Because I just saw some.”

“Doubles!” A-Xuan gasped.

Jiang Cheng raised his wooden sword with confidence – with this many of them, they were bound to defeat the bad guys. “Let’s get ‘em!”

“You idiots!” Wen Chao hissed. “These are my cousins!”

“Sorry about that,” Nie Huaisang said apologetically. He had an extremely thick face and didn’t mind apologizing – or crying, or whining, or anything, really, as long as it meant he got his way in the end. “we thought you were evil monsters.”

“I’ve n-never been m-mistaken for a m-monster before,” the little boy who Wen Chao had introduced as Wen Ning said. He seemed to think it was pretty neat, which Jiang Cheng could understand.

He’d never gotten mistaken for a monster.

…well, he was still young. One day, when he was all grown up, he’d be the scariest.

“I don’t want to know,” his older sister said. She looked cross, and also like she was about the same age as Jiang Yanli, though much less friendly – her name was Wen Qing, apparently. “Don’t tell me, because I don’t want to know. This whole thing sounds like the introduction to a bad joke: a Wen, a Nie, a Jiang, a Lan, a Jin, and – some kid – ”

“I’m Wei Ying!”

“ – and some kid are running through the halls of the Nightless City completely unsupervised? Ridiculous.” She snorted. “I don’t want to even consider what sort of trouble leaving you alone would cause! You should be sitting quietly somewhere, keeping out of the way –”

Wen Qing was definitely not going to be helping with the doubles hunt, Jiang Cheng decided, and glanced at all the others, who seemed to be in agreement.

Then they all unanimously turned to look at Nie Huaisang, because while Wen Qing might be Wen Chao’s cousin, it was pretty clear that Nie Huaisang was the one who was best at managing older kids.

“Our older siblings are over at the room in the end of the hall,” Nie Huaisang told her, his eyes somehow seeming even bigger and more adorable than normal. “I think Wen-da-ge was saying something about teaching them a lesson, I don’t know what he was talking about…”

“A lesson?” Wen Qing looked alarmed. “Those are the sect heirs! He’d better not – oh, A-Ning, you stay here with the other children. I’ll be right back…”

She strode off with a determined expression on her face.

“Wow,” Wei Ying said. “That worked really well.”

Nie Huaisang preened.

“I don’t remember my big brother saying anything about lessons,” Wen Chao said, sounding puzzled.

“He didn’t,” Nie Huaisang told him. “But it got her to leave us alone, didn’t it?”

“Do not tell lies is a rule,” Lan Zhan told him sternly.

“It wasn’t a lie. I said I thought Wen-da-ge was saying something like that, I didn’t say he actually said it – I’m entitled to think whatever thoughts I want!”

Lan Zhan didn’t look convinced.

“Look at it this way, Lan Zhan,” Jiang Cheng said practically. “Would you really be willing to sit in a room out of the way instead of night-hunting?”

Lan Zhan still looked mulish, but he shook his head, conceding the point.

“You’re n-night-hunting?” Wen Ning said, sounding fascinated. “I’ve never been night-hunting!”

Interestingly, his stutter seemed to decrease as he got excited. Jiang Cheng wondered why that was – maybe he was just nervous around new people.

“That’s right,” Jiang Cheng told him proudly. “Tell me, have you ever seen – doubles?”

“Seeing double?” Wen Ning asked, scratching his nose. “Uh, yeah, I guess so? Sometimes when I get really dizzy, I see double…”

“I don’t think running around in circles is going to help us find the doubles,” A-Xuan said dubiously. “I just got really dizzy, and I still didn’t see anything.”

“Yeah, me either,” Nie Huaisang said. He was lying on his back on the ground and moaning a little. “Maybe we need a new plan.”

“I think our original plan was better,” Jiang Cheng agreed. He was still a bit dizzy, too. “Their nest has gotta be somewhere near Wen-da-ge’s room, right? If they’re planning on swapping him out?”

“Maybe he’s tied up in there,” Wei Ying said. He was a little bit of a ghoul, Jiang Cheng had discovered. “Locked away for the skinning.”

“He’s not!” Wen Chao exclaimed, sitting up in his fury and turning a little green from having moved too quickly so soon after all that running. “You take that back!”

“If he is locked up somewhere, we’ll find him before anything bad happens to him,” Nie Huaisang intervened. “Wei-xiong, don’t be mean, okay? That’s his big brother you’re talking about.”

“…oh. Sorry. I didn’t mean it.”

Wen Chao sniffled a little, pressing his lips together to keep from crying. “You’d better be sorry.”

Jiang Cheng rolled over to look at him. “Wen Chao, I’ve got a question for you,” he said. “It’s kind of a dumb question, and you might get angry if I ask it, but I don’t actually mean it as being mean or nothing. I just really wanna know.”

As anyone might’ve expected, that got everyone’s attention onto him and off the previous subject, as well as off their still slightly uneasy stomachs. Even Lan Zhan tilted his head in such a way that suggested he was interested in hearing it without actually giving anything away.

Wen Chao looked suspicious, probably rightfully. “Uh-huh,” he said, eyes narrow. “What’s the question?”

“Uh,” Jiang Cheng said, feeling a touch awkward. “Okay, so, my mom taught me that when someone says ‘sorry’, you’re supposed to say ‘that’s all right’ or ‘you’re forgiven’ or ‘think nothing of it’ or something like that.”

“…yeah?”

“Well, every time anyone says ‘sorry’ to you, you say ‘you better be’, so I was wondering if that was a Wen sect thing or a –”

Wen Ning started giggling. “It’s not a Wen sect thing,” he said, his eyes curved until they were nearly slits. “Not Dafan Wen, anyway. Maybe it’s a main clan thing? Are there special main clan things?”

“My ribbon’s a special main clan thing,” Lan Zhan said.

“It is not,” A-Xuan said. “All Lan sect people have ribbons!”

“Not with clouds.” Lan Zhan was pouting. “Only main clan can have clouds on their ribbons.”

“That’s just a design, though, isn’t it? Like – fashion.”

“It is not!”

“We have special clarity bells,” Jiang Cheng interrupted, waving his own. “Everyone else’s normal, but ours are special!”

“Wait, does everyone get cool main clan only stuff?” Wen Chao wondered. “Why don’t I get cool main clan stuff?”

“I don’t!” Wei Ying volunteered.

“You’re not even from a clan! Or a sect!”

“Oh. Right. Oops. Got over-excited for a second there.”

“Uh, hey…” Wen Ning said, coughing a little.

“I don’t think we get anything special for being main clan people,” Nie Huaisang mused. He’d turned over to lie on his stomach, so he put his chin on his hands and was kicking his feet in the air. “Do we get something special? Except maybe more spending money? We should get something special. Like…I don’t know. A special pin.”

“A pin?” Wen Chao scoffed. “That’s not special!”

“Why not? It could be!”

“Uh-uh.”

“Uh-huh!”

“…excuse me, please…”

“Hey, Wen Chao never even answered my question,” Jiang Cheng complained. “Can we get back to that?”

“Maybe I don’t want to answer your stupid question!”

“Hey! My question’s not stupid!”

“Excuse me…!”

“Yeah? Well maybe you’re stupid!”

“Why you – Lan Zhan! Bite him for me!”

“Don’t you dare, you stuck up bedsheet –”

“Will you all SHUT UP AND LISTEN TO ME?” Wen Ning yelled.

“…and that’s why you have to bring along snacks when you go on adventures,” Wen Ning finished his explanation. “Because if you don’t, you get hungry, and when you get hungry, you get angry.”

He’d brought enough peanuts to share.

They really did feel better after eating them, too.

“I thought it’d be okay because we had jiejie’s soup,” Jiang Cheng muttered, shamefaced. His mother had reminded him to eat plenty of snacks as well, right before he got sent here, and his mother never said anything extraneous. “I didn’t realize we’d get hungry again so quick.”

“You had a whole nap in between,” Wen Ning told him. “Napping uses a lot of energy, and running uses even more. Once you burn the energy, you need to replace it with food.”

“You know lots of neat stuff,” Wei Ying told him, and Wen Ning turned red. “Also, you’ve got great lungs.”

Wen Ning turned even more red, somehow. “….I didn’t mean to shout…”

“You did,” Lan Zhan said. He was pouting. Maybe because Wei Ying was paying attention to someone else for once. “A lot.”

“…I’m not supposed to shout…”

“Is there anything you are supposed to do?” Jiang Cheng asked. Thus far it’d mostly sounded like Wen Ning wasn’t allowed to do very much at all.

“Uh. Study medicine, I guess?”

“Ooooooh,” Nie Huaisang said. “You’re our healer! That makes you important!”

Wen Ning stared. “…no one’s ever said I was important before.”

“That’s why you’ve gotta listen to me,” Nie Huaisang said happily. “My da-ge says that everyone’s important for some reason, and also that everyone’s good at something, even if it’s hard to figure out what it is exactly. And whenever people try to make fun of me for not being good at something, he hits them right in the face even though he gets punished for it, so you know he’s right!”

Jiang Cheng wasn’t sure that was how that worked, but it sounded pretty impressive.

“Well, as our healer, do you think we’re okay to keep going?” A-Xuan asked, and stuck out his hand. “You can feel my pulse if you want to check.”

“Uh, no. I’m sure it’s fine…you all look less angry now, anyway. You shouldn’t be too angry, it’s not good for you.”

“I don’t think that’s right,” Nie Huaisang said.

“I’m pretty sure that’s not right,” Jiang Cheng agreed, thinking of his mom.

“Anyway, let’s go find Wen Chao’s brother’s room,” he added, getting up himself. “Before we can meet any more obstacles!”

“Uh,” Wen Chao said, following along as they made their way down the hallway that he’d indicated to them earlier as being the right one. “About that…there might be one more obstacle in our path…”

“Really?” Wei Ying asked. He was right behind Jiang Cheng, who was out in front. “What obstacle?”

“Well…you see…”

Jiang Cheng tugged open the door.

Unexpectedly, something huge and dark leaped out, heading right for them.

He screamed.

They all screamed.

“I’ve decided I like your big brother,” Jiang Cheng said to Wen Chao, who was scowling. “When he’s not double-i-fied, he’s got good taste. No, great taste. Amazing taste.”

“It’s just a dog,” Wen Chao grumbled.

“It’s the fuzziest, most wonderful dog,” Jiang Cheng said, trying to cuddle it. “I want to ride it like a horse.”

The dog that guarded Wen Xu’s room might even be large enough for that, being all big boned and tall, with a thick jaw and heavy teeth that looked good for crushing things – but also the most adorably dumb-looking little doggy smile that made Jiang Cheng’s heart melt the second he saw it.

“I’m impressed you managed to tame it,” Nie Huaisang said. He was hiding back next to Wen Chao. Next to most of the others, actually – apparently Jiang Cheng was the only dog-crazy one, although A-Xuan had also eventually come over to pet the dog as well. “It’s so…large.”

“I’ve got three dogs of my own,” Jiang Cheng boasted. “Back at home. They know all the commands! Like sit, and stay, and find master –”

The dog gave a bark and got up from where it was sitting and happily receiving pets, then started trotting down the hallway.

Jiang Cheng stared.

They all stared.

“Wait,” Wei Ying said. “Is the dog going to find Wen Chao’s big brother? I mean – maybe – the real one?”

“It must be! Chase it!”

They chased it.

Unfortunately, the dog only led them back to the same main hall that they’d been next to before, the one where Wen Ruohan kept his throne and accepted audiences. They’d already looked there, and there hadn’t been any sign of doubles there at all – and this time the door was shut and locked with a great big bar on it, blocking everything.

The sound of faint voices echoed out from inside.

“Is that my mom?” Wei Ying asked, pressing his ear to the door. “It kinda sounds like my mom, yelling. But not quite…”

“I think that might be my mom, yelling,” Jiang Cheng said, his ear equally positioned. “But she’s back at the Lotus Pier, isn’t she?”

“Maybe she came to pick you up…?”

“If she could’ve come to pick me up, she wouldn’t have sent me in the first place,” Jiang Cheng pointed out. “Either me or jiejie.”

There was a deeper sound, almost like a thrumming, or maybe like a mudslide.

“That might be my dad,” Nie Huaisang said frowning. “It kind of sounds like my dad, though; no one can yell the way he can when he gets angry, not even da-ge. I can’t tell through this stupid door, though. Wen-xiong, where’s the back entrance?”

“What are you talking about?”

“The back entrance,” Nie Huaisang said, and rolled his eyes. “There’s always a back entrance! That’s how people can escape if they’re stuck!”

Wen Chao blinked at him.

“He’s right,” Lan Zhan said, unexpectedly. “We have a back entrance, too, back home – a secret one. My shufu showed it to me so that I’d know about it in case of a crisis.”

“Lan Zhan,” Wei Ying said. “You are so cool.”

Lan Zhan made a small meeping sound and covered his face with his hands. His ears were red again.

“…I think we do, too,” A-Xuan said. “We’ve got so many entrances I don’t know which one would be the ‘back’ entrance, but we’ve definitely got more than one way in or out to the main rooms. It’d be dangerous not to, wouldn’t it? If there was only one way in, you might get stuck.”

“See?” Nie Huaisang exclaimed. “There’s always a back entrance! Always! Isn’t that right, Jiang-xiong?”

Jiang Cheng scratched his nose, feeling slightly embarrassed since he didn’t think he knew what the back entrance at home was, though it sounded pretty plausible and he didn’t want to feel left out. “I think our back entrance back home is jumping out of a window and swimming away,” he temporized. “But there’s still another way in and out, yeah. I mean, what if there’s a fire or a flood?”

Wen Chao was turning red, and not in a happy way. “Well, there’s no back entrance here, okay?” he said, glaring. “None at all!”

“There’s got to be! Maybe you just don’t know about it –”

“Wen Chao couldn’t tell you about it even if he did know about it,” Wen Ning interjected. “He’s gotta keep the sect secrets. Isn’t that right?”

“…yeah. That’s right. That’s right!”

Jiang Cheng was pretty sure Wen Chao was just trying to save face.

“Well, it wouldn’t be giving away the secret if we guessed it, right?” Wei Ying said, lacing his hands behind his head as if he were trying to look cool, which he wasn’t. Well, maybe a bit. Wei Ying was intrinsically cool in a way Jiang Cheng was a little jealous of, and was going to get Wei Ying to teach him right away when they were done. “That wouldn’t be you telling us, just something we worked out. We can all try to figure out where the back entrance is, like a mystery, and if we find that, maybe we can find our way inside!”

“I mean…I guess that makes sense…but wait. Why do we even want to go inside?” Wen Chao asked, though he looked halfway to being convinced. “There’s nothing in there related to the doubles. It’s just my dad, and maybe your parents.”

Wen Ning raised a hand. “Do doubles just affect kids?” he asked, and they all turned to look at him. “I mean, we know there’s a doubles nest around here, right? And we’re worried about it getting your siblings…can it get your parents?”

“No way,” Jiang Cheng said at once. “My mom’s a great cultivator, no one would ever be able to beat her!”

“No one in the world can beat my dad,” Wen Chao scoffed. “He’s my dad.”

“I would know if my shufu was replaced,” Lan Zhan said firmly.

They looked at the others.

A-Xuan looked uncertain, which was fair, but Nie Huaisang was frowning. “Well,” he said. “I’d normally say the same because my dad’s super strong, but…well…I mean, if it were me…”

“What is it?” Lan Zhan asked, and he looked a little anxious. And if even Lan Zhan looked anxious…

“Well, I’m just saying, if the doubles were smart, and wanted to gather all the important grown-ups in one place all at once…”

Jiang Cheng’s stomach dropped.

“We’ve got to find the back entrance,” Wei Ying said, now looking worried himself. “We’ve gotta. My parents are there, too, and my mom is already doomed – she’s gotta be really careful!”

“We’ll figure it out,” Jiang Cheng announced, trying very hard to be brave. “Don’t worry. We’ll save them!”

#mdzs #jiang cheng #nie huaisang #lan wangji #wei wuxian #jin zixuan #wen chao #wen qing #wen ning #my fic #my fics #rugrats

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robininthelabyrinth · 3 years

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Fire and Light (ao3) - on tumblr: part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5

- Chapter 6 -

For his trip to the Cloud Recesses, Wen Chao was assigned a bodyguard of his own, a man introduced to them as Wen Zhuliu – not his actual name, of course. Wen Ruohan handed out his surname like a gift, spreading his poison to as many people as possible, and this Wen Zhuliu was apparently one of his most highly prized finds.

“They call him the Core-Melting Hand,” Wen Xu told the children. “And it’s not an exaggeration – he has a technique that can actually melt a person’s golden core.”

Personally, Nie Mingjue thought that techniques like that, however frightening, were all a bunch of trash in the end – a technique of that sort was flashy, impressive, but it had only two uses: to scare people or to turn the tide of a single battle against fellow cultivators, and for the run-of-the-mill work of night-hunts was totally pointless. It required such immense focus and dedication to puzzle out that it left no room for anything else, meaning this Wen Zhuliu probably didn’t know how to do anything practical, even as he thought himself better than others.

The man looked it, too. His face seemed older than he probably actually was in years, with an expression of detachment and ennui that made him come off as arrogant, or at minimum as snobbish, despite being nothing more than a tool for Wen Ruohan to use up and cast aside.

He’d probably be a bad influence on Wen Chao, Nie Mingjue thought, frowning to himself. He would need to have a word with Wen Chao before he left – tell him to trust his own instincts, to avoid things that made him uncomfortable, to reach out to trustworthy adults in the Lan sect if he thought he needed help. Even if this Wen Zhuliu wanted to make trouble on Wen Ruohan’s behalf, it would be difficult for him to act if Wen Chao used his youth and desire to please his father as an excuse to obey the rules…

A hand touched his shoulder and Nie Mingjue flinched, his hand flying to Baxia’s hilt – he was never without her comforting weight anymore – but it was only Wen Xu, looking as anxious as ever.

“It’s lunch,” he said, and Nie Mingjue blinked, noticing that they were now alone in the hall. He must have lost time again, sinking into his thoughts without tracking the world outside. A dangerous habit anywhere, even more so in Qishan, but on the other hand it wasn’t like he was being allowed out for night-hunts right now – the danger here was only internal, and Wen Ruohan found his suffering funny. “I asked them to make lamb skewers with cumin.”

A Qinghe specialty. Nie Mingjue appreciated the gesture.

“Wen Zhuliu,” he croaked, his voice rasping as if he had just been screaming. Maybe he had been. It hadn’t been that long since the last ‘walk’ through the Fire Palace that Wen Ruohan had invited him on – they were a regular part of the routine, now. Wen Ruohan’s own personal indoctrination since the usual sorts of things didn’t seem to be working well enough on Nie Mingjue.

Maybe if he could keep thinking of it that way, as some twisted form of education, then perhaps the horror of the things he saw and, worse, was made to do – the choices he was forced to make, the things he had to do to innocent people with his own hands, the things that were sometimes done to him as an example, the screams, whether his own or others, that incessantly rang in his ears, the feeling afterwards that he would never be clean again – perhaps it would eventually become merely mundane. Maybe. Probably not.

It might be worse if it did, actually.

“What about Wen Zhuliu?” Wen Xu asked, interrupting Nie Mingjue’s increasingly dark thoughts, and Nie Mingjue shook his head to clear it.

“He’ll be trouble,” he said.

Wen Xu frowned. “You think so? He’s just a bodyguard.”

Nie Mingjue shook his head a second time. It was evident to him that Wen Zhuliu was being sent to ensure that the Lan sect taught Wen Chao only as much – or as little – as Wen Ruohan preferred; otherwise, there was no need for such a powerful servant, with a frightening aura and an older man’s authority, to chaperone Wen Chao. Especially not to such a peaceful place, backed by the Lan sect’s guarantee of safety.

Wen Chao had only so very recently started acting like a person, thinking of others and considering questions of right and wrong beyond his own selfish desires – leaving him alone with Wen Zhuliu threatened that.

Nie Mingjue was sure of it.

“I’ll talk to A-Chao about it, then, warn him of the sorts of tricks he might play,” Wen Xu said. He would know them best, of course. “And I’ll make room for you to talk to him as well, if you feel able. Maybe I can get us permission to escort them some part of their journey, you and I…it’d be good for you to stretch your legs a little.”

Get you out of here for a while, he meant, and Nie Mingjue shrugged. Even if Wen Xu won permission for him to leave, which he doubted he’d be able to, in the end Nie Mingjue would have to come back, back to Wen Ruohan and his Fire Palace, back to all the people who depended on him.

Nie Huaisang, Wen Chao, Wen Qing, Wen Ning, even Wen Xu…

He was their big brother. He had a responsibility to them, just the same as he’d had ever since his father put Nie Huaisang into his arms for the first time, love chaining him more effectively than any iron.

He had to come back.

After all, if he didn’t go walking with Wen Ruohan, someone else might have to, and that was just – intolerable.

“I need help planning a murder,” Wen Xu announced as he swept in through the door in a swirl of intricately designed red robes, and Nie Mingjue wondered grumpily what type of dramatic actor he had been in a past or future life that made him quite so inclined to extravagant gestures. “Well, don’t all of you jump up and volunteer to help at once!”

Everyone reluctantly turned to look at him. Wen Ning was playing weiqi with Nie Mingjue while Nie Huaisang pretended to meditate as Wen Qing examined his meridians for any courses of treatment that might make cultivating easier on him; no one was especially moved by Wen Xu’s grandiose proclamation.

Maybe if he didn’t say something similar just about every other week…

“Who are we murdering today, Wen-ge?” Nie Huaisang asked, cracking an eye open and very obviously asking more to have a reason to stop even the pretense of meditation rather than any actual interest in the answer. “One of the teachers, or the soldiers, or a guard, or someone that stepped on your foot in the marketplace –”

“Wen Zhuliu,” Wen Xu said, and Nie Mingjue put down the weiqi piece he’d been toying with abruptly, with a smack that shook the table.

“What did he do?” he asked, concerned. “Is A-Chao all right?”

“He’s fine, if a bit shaken,” Wen Xu said. “Wen Zhuliu took him to a brothel.”

“He did what,” Nie Mingjue said.

“Unfair,” Nie Huaisang said. “I want to visit a brothel.”

“I’m fairly sure he wasn’t there on an educational visit, Huaisang-xiong,” Wen Qing said. “Or, at least, not in terms of a literary education.”

“Oh. Ick. No thanks, then.”

Wen Xu was gnashing his teeth together. “He wants to make a waste out of him. Fancy restaurants, a gambling house – I insisted we leave as soon as I realized – and now a brothel…if I hadn’t put a stop to it, A-Chao would be addicted to every vice available by the time he got to the Lan sect. They’d kick him out within a week!”

“He wouldn’t be able to challenge your position if he were a waste,” Wen Ning observed quietly. “If you were more like your father, you might even thank him for getting rid of a rival.”

“But why now?” Nie Mingjue asked, shaking his head. “A-Chao’s still so young. Playing around at that age can injure the body.”

It probably fucked up your head, too. Wen Ruohan’s specialty.

“If A-Ning is right about the motive, that’s the sort of injury one might want to inflict,” Wen Qing said. “Boys that young can’t get women pregnant, and overdoing it too young can damage them, keep them from having children in the future. Not to mention the impact on their adult personalities; it might turn him into a lascivious beast, unable to take no for an answer, or else retard him in childhood, injure him with trauma – or all of the above. Or none, of course, some people are fine, but it’s not something you want to take a chance on.”

“You put a stop to it, right?” Nie Mingjue asked Wen Xu, who nodded.

“I explained at some length to A-Chao how exactly one gets infected with lin bing,” he said. “Bleeding sores on your prick and all…in fact, I may have overdone it a bit. I’m not sure he’s even willing to look at a woman right now.”

“Good thing he’s off to the Cloud Recesses, then,” Nie Huaisang said, pitiless in the ways of the young. At least, Nie Mingjue hoped that was the reason, and not Qishan Wen cruelty seeping into his bones. “Don’t they split up men and women?”

“I knew Wen Zhuliu was trouble,” Nie Mingjue said, deciding to sidestep the current conversational subject. “We should write to the Lan sect – Xichen will be able to recruit his uncle to help stop anything like that going forward. Though I still want to know why Sect Leader Wen would do such a thing to A-Chao now. Haven’t I reduced my level of influence on you enough?”

He got a whole array of pitying looks that suggested his supposed ‘influence’ on them – mentioned several times by Wen Ruohan, and just as inexplicable to Nie Mingjue as it had been the first time it had come up, even though everyone else seemed to automatically know what was meant by it – was not only still existent but running stronger than ever.

“Well, fine,” he said, scowling at the traitors who refused, to a man (and woman), to explain anything. It wasn’t his fault he didn’t understand what they were always not-saying to each other about it. “But the point still stands. Why now? Why this way?”

“It’s his first time leaving the Nightless City without the usual retinue,” Wen Qing said. “And he’ll be staying at the Cloud Recesses for a few months. If he gets used to the outside world without going off-course, it may be harder to lure him into vice later. Perhaps it’s just a coincidence?”

“Perhaps,” Nie Mingjue said.

“If we’re very lucky, it’s not a coincidence, but has nothing to do with us at all,” Nie Huaisang put in. “There may be more that we don’t yet know.”

The ‘more’ turned out to be a very well-off young lady, closely connected to several of the cultivation families in Henan – in the area right between Qishan Wen, the remnants of Qinghe Nie, and Lanling Jin – moving into the Nightless City as Wen Chao’s future bride.

Nominally, anyway.

In reality, her ‘bridal’ suite became a regular stop on Wen Ruohan’s daily schedule, and the extremely audible sounds of their romping had everyone chewing ginger in an attempt to avoid vomiting.

“There goes any hope of another girl for me to spend time with,” Wen Qing said with a sigh.

“What? I’m not good enough for you?” Nie Huaisang huffed, mock-offended. “How many girlish arts to I have to excel in, huh? I dress neat, I embroider, I…uh…”

She poked him in the forehead. “I was just saying that it might be nice to have someone else, that’s all. Ideally someone who is actually my gender. But I’m not anywhere desperate enough to spend time with someone like that.”

The young lady in question, Ma Liyuan, was arrogant and self-absorbed, closer to Nie Mingjue’s age – or maybe even Wen Xu’s, he hadn’t asked – than to Wen Chao’s, and seemed quite content with the circumstances that had brought her to and kept her in the Nightless City, provided that she was kept well supplied in new clothing and make-up. The morality, or lack thereof, of fucking her engaged-in-absentia fiancé’s father on the regular appeared not to matter in the slightest.

“I’m happy that she’s here,” Nie Mingjue said, and when they all looked at him strangely, he elaborated, “She’s been very distracting.”

He hadn’t had to go on anymore ‘walks’ with Wen Ruohan since she arrived, since there was really only so much time to spare for extracurricular activities in the busy schedule of a Sect Leader, and his mental state had improved dramatically as a result. He didn’t like the fact that his reprieve came at Wen Chao’s expense – at least Wen Chao was safely away in Gusu for the moment, and didn’t have to endure the wretched humiliation of it in person – but he couldn’t deny that it was, in fact, a reprieve.

“It won’t last,” Wen Xu predicted gloomily. “It never does, with his lovers. Father only ever cares about power; he’s fucking the promise of Henan land, not her, though I assume he also enjoys demeaning her in every way he can think of in the process. Honestly, I don’t know why Father didn’t just take her on as one of his own concubines if he was planning on doing this – why the charade?”

“Another plan to get A-Chao out of the line of succession?” Wen Ning suggested.

“Seems like too much effort for just that,” Wen Qing said, and Nie Mingjue nodded, agreeing. Wen Ruohan didn’t need a reason to disinherit somebody, but even if he wanted one, he only needed one, not a half-dozen.

“Perhaps he just wants A-Chao to become disappointing,” Nie Huaisang said, his chin on his hands. “To us, I mean, not to him. A-Chao’s prickly, you know – if you mixed together those vices he’s being tempted with and the humiliation he must feel when he hears about what’s going on here, he might get himself into something stupid. And then, well, you know A-Chao would be heartbroken if we turned away from him, and you know he’s not the most independent person. All he’d have left is him.”

“But we wouldn’t turn away from A-Chao even if he did disappoint us,” Nie Mingjue objected. “I’d break his legs if he tried to turn into some drunken wastrel, of course; scold him, refuse to let him out of his room, make him reflect and write reasons why he needed to stop, train him into the ground if necessary, but that’s hardly turning away from him. Who’d do something like that?”

Everyone looked at him fondly, as if he was a puppy that just performed a unique trick.

Nie Mingjue scowled at them. Hadn’t they respected him, once? Or was that his imagination?

“It’s a reasonable thought,” Wen Xu said, apparently opting to ignore Nie Mingjue’s view on the subject. “Divide and conquer is my father’s preferred method of attack, along with forcing people to suppress their own morals in order to reach a temporary compromise that he’ll only break further the next time. With Mingjue-xiong injured –”

He was fine. Physically, anyway. The mental scars didn’t count.

“– and A-Chao temporarily gone, his next goal will be one of us, no doubt. Perhaps we should preempt him.”

“Oooh, are we staging a fight?” Nie Huaisang asked, perking up. “I call spectator. Fight! Fight!”

Nie Mingjue reached over and tugged on his hair. “If there’s going to be a fight between the four of you, you are definitely getting involved, and not as a spectator. And speaking of fighting, Huaisang, where is your saber? Have you been practicing?”

Everybody laughed.

#mdzs #nie mingjue #nie huaisang #wen xu #wen chao #wen ning #wen qing #my fic #my fics #fire and light

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dreamingsushi · 4 years

Text

The Untamed - Episode 37

Wei Ying asks that somebody volunteers to help him and Lan Sizhui is the first one to offer help. Jin Ling follows the two of them to the kitchen, which is really dirty. Wei Ying finds some rice (I don’t know how you call it in English, but it’s a specific kind of rice, “nuomi” that is used to make rice cakes, rice porridge and others), which makes him very pleased. With the help of Sizhui and Jin Ling, he starts making some rice porridge: nuomi has the property to stop the poisoning. I don’t think though that the hot spices he puts in it do. I have never seen spicy rice porridge yet but why not?

He then asks how come they all got to Yi city together and coincidentally met there. They all came from different places, but chasing at the same thing, they just don’t know what. At night, something would hang a dead cat in front of their door. I must say... I am glad no cat was hurt for this, but the toy they use instead is so bad, it actually doesn’t even look like a cat. So Wei Ying deduces that somebody made them meet with him and Lan Zhan on purpose and it is probably related with making whole again the Stygian tiger seal. Then Sizhui tells him the porridge is ready and they feed it to those who were poisoned. As expected, it’s so spicy that they have trouble eating it.

Right then, they hear the sound of a stick knocking on the ground. Wei Ying has a look first: it’s a lady dressed in white holding a stick. Then Jin Ling pushes him away to see for himself and get scared away. When Wei Ying teases him, he pretends that there’s not much to see and then Sizhui has a look and get scared from what he saw. Wei Ying encourages him to take a look again as it is a good opportunity for them to cultivate. Jin Ling describes what he saw, but Sizhui offers a more detailed observation which deserves him the praises of Wei Ying. Gotta love that little Sizhui, he’s really smart. Wei Ying asks why she’s following them, but she can’t talk and runs away when she hears something.

Then a guy wearing black comes and he seems in a really bad state. Even though the sword name is hidden, Wei Ying recognizes him and declares they have to save him. Yes please do save him. I recognize him too and it’s Xiao Xingchen. He uses a summoning spell or whatever it is and takes Xingchen back in and asks a bowl of porridge for him too. Then Sizhui sees plenty of Kuilei outside and believes the door won’t be able to hold against them.

So Wei Ying wants to use the summoning spell once again and Sizhui gets worried about him and everyone offers he uses their blood instead. Oh that’s not it. He asks for an empty charm, but nobody has one so an already drawn one is fine too. Jin Ling gives him one and he changes it into something else to solidify the door. As that just happened, something is coming in from the roof. And it’s Song Lan, but transformed into a Kuilei.

Wei Ying uses his flute to calm him down and they manage to tie him. When Wei Ying tries to talk to him, he realizes that someone cut his tongue away. He finds the same needles in Song Lan’s head that he found in Wen Ning’s head. This is like... the most disgusting part of the drama, even the flashback of Wen Ning made me want to throw up.

Wei Ying asks if anybody learned “association with spirits”. I put the English subtitles to know what they used as a translation. I am not completely convinced. Anyways, it’s a skill that you can use to ask spirits questions. The same Lan Zhan used in the Nie burial mound earlier. Sizhui happens to know it and even though it’s not as good as Lan Zhan, obviously, he’s good enough that if the spirit wills to answer, he won’t lie. So Wei Ying asks three questions: what’s his name? Who killed him? And who controls him? So he really is Song Lan. Xiao Xingchen killed him. And the person that controls him is... the one behind them.

OH DAMN. I WAS A FOOL. I just heard his voice and... That’s not Xiao Xingcheng, that’s that bastard Xue Yang. THEY GOT ME. And Wei Ying. Ok but no, I am confused. I am just going to stop guessing. That blindfolded guy asks that everyone but Wei Ying get out. Sizhui hesitates a little bit and stays by Wei Ying’s side. Then Wei Ying tells him that since he’s the smartest, he guides the other. Then Sizhui tells him that Wei Ying looks a lot like Lan Zhan. He doesn’t even know himself, but if any of them is there, Sizhui feels like he doesn’t need to be afraid of anything. How cuuuuute.

OK THAT IS XUEYANG. Great. I’m not crazy. He hands a pouch to Wei Ying which contains the fragments of soul of somebody. He wants Wei Ying to bring it back together. But Wei Ying says he can’t do it. First, there’s not enough of his soul left. Second, if that person has no will to exist, he can’t do anything. Third, that person is already and he can’t bring him back.

Oh no wonder I was mistaken. Xue Yang used something like a mask to like Xiao Xingcheng. Props to the actor of Xiao Xingcheng for acting also that crazy Xue Yang.

Seems like Xue Yang has a lot of admiration for Wei Ying and making the Stygian tiger seal. Also he already knew that there were five pieces of Stygian iron. Blablabla, that dude talks a lot. Then... WEN NING! YAY! Wen comes around fighting Song Lan (but please don’t hurt Song Lan too bad it’s not his fault).

Xue Yang asks him if he knows who will win and Wei Ying says of course it’s Wen Ning. Then... Xue Yang says some things are too attached to their master, no matter how much he tried, he could never fully control Wen Ning. SACRILEGiOUS. Well said Wei Ying. Wen Ying is not a thing. (not to confuse with the insult “you’re a not a thing” obviously)

Xue Yang starts fighting Wei Ying so he can bring him back with him to make whole again that soul. Then Wei Ying says that he should fight with someone else, it’s unfair since his new body doesn’t have much “energy” compared to before. Xue Yang says there’s no way Lan Zhan would be able to come as he is occupied but Xue Yang’s friend. BUT YOU WERE DAMN WRONG. Lan Zhan comes right in, like a flying angel.

So Wei Ying goes to find the younger ones since he is not needed by Lan Zhan neither Wen Ning.

Wei Ying’s face though when Lan Jingyi asks him if he doesn’t think that Lan Zhan is awesome. He then agrees, smiling. Again, Wei Ying making fun of Lan Zhan.

Then Kuilei are near, they can’t stay there. Wei Ying hears again the sound of the bamboo stick and says to follow that sound. That lady was trying to save them by making them leave the city.

But this time she brings them to a burial ground and when they open the coffin she knocks on, they find Xiao Xingchen’s body. No... Xiao Xingcheng died ): Sizhui asks if he should not use again “association with spirits” but Wei Ying says it’s going to be to complicated, so he wants to use Empathy. Jin Ling opposes as it too dangerous and a deviation of cultivation arts, but Wei Ying insists: they don’t have enough time.

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