#protect xie lian

[yumemiruuuu]

Now that I’ve read the entirety of TGCF, here is the result of my grand research on:

“The number of times that Xie Lian did not know whether to laugh or cry”

Volume 1

Pages 79, 107, 235, 330, and 367 - 5 times

Volume 2

Pages 28, 80 (81), 206, 256, and 339 - 5/6 times

Volume 3

Pages 321, 330, and 363 - 3 times

Volume 4

pages 212, 290, 298, 311, 317, 338, and 368 - 7 times

Volume 5

Pages 27, 121, 177, 246, and 300 - 5 times

Volume 6

Pages 22, 40, 80, and 119 - 4 times

Volume 7

Pages 33, 81, 124, 134, 151, 164, 171 and 196 - 8 times

Volume 8

Pages 176, 213, 266, 285, 305 and 322 - 6 times

Which makes it a whopping average of 5 times with the Median being 5~5.5, Mode being 5/6 (depending on whether it was 5 or 6 times in volume 2), and the range of 5.

I could be missing a couple more of the instances so if I find anymore at any point in time during my re-read, I’ll come back and add it up and recalculate everything.

#was this necessary for my reading journey? absolutely not #if only I put in this much dedication to my actual school papers and such #I genuinely don’t know what this result will be useful for but you’re welcome if anyone does indeed use it for what ever reason #xie lian not knowing whether to laugh or cry is a whole ass mood honestly #i can relate so hard #it’s so funny and sad at the same time #xie lian is baby #protect xie lian #and quan yizhen #deadass protect quan yizhen #I mean like he’s a martial god and all so he doesn’t need protecting but he’s literally baby boi to me if anything happens to him I stg #tldr this was about xie lian but i derailed and started talking about quan yizhen #point is tgcf good #heaven official's blessing #tgcf brainrot has caught up to me #tgcf #tian guan ci fu #天官赐福

[lazycranberrydoodles]

this is how the post-lqq interaction went right

#obsessed with this hua cheng tbh!!! hes so cute!! #‘dont idolize someone’ hua cheng is built different #‘nobody wants to worship a scrap god’ hua cheng is built different #‘how can you protect your beloved if you’re dead’ hua cheng is built different #‘slaughtering people have been the best way to make a spiritual weapon’ hua cheng is bu #art #my art #tgcf #tian guan ci fu #hob #heaven official’s blessing fanart #heaven official’s blessing #xie lian #hua cheng #hualian #lmao #tgcf meme

[komaneko-kun]

i think a headpat and being called a good boy could fix him

#OUAGH 😭😭😭 just when you think he can't get any more kicked puppy coded... #WHAT ARE THOSE EYES CMON WTFF JUST RIP MY HEART OUT NEXT TIME #and he's a little taken aback ??? like he expected to just be ignored after that or- #me when my duty is to protect and why would anyone care abt me in return SHUT UP #THEY ARE SO GENTLE W EACH OTHER AHAHA HAAAA 😆😬🙃 #fenglian #feng xin #xie lian #tgcf s2 #tgcf spoilers #I BET ON LOSING DOOGS

[moonsvillain]

have been toying with the idea of an au wherein shen jiu, after burning down the qiu household and running away, comes across xie lian rather than wu yanzi poaching him immediately afterwards:

i'd imagine in this verse he runs away to town rather than immediately being found in the aftermath of what he's done. at this point, shen jiu would be too paranoid to consider reaching out for directions to cang qiong mountain even if he wanted to make it there: what if they knew what he did? or figured it out if he did know? (if he even had the mind to think of these things through his panic)

he doesn't want to end up begging on the streets again, though—too alike his childhood and last time he was in that position, shen jiu ended up with the qius in the first place

so he takes refuge in temples that he comes across, stealing food when he can before moving to a different part of the rather large town he's ended up in so there's no clear pattern of when he shows up at whichever food stall

despite not holding that same respect and unwavering belief in gods (how could he, after everything he's gone through? shouldn't they have stepped in, sometime? what god would let him suffer as he did, separating him from the only person he loved?) he knows better than to try them, and begrudgingly thanks them for the shelter (because this he did appreciate, at the very least, if nothing else)

winter hits hard when it does, and shen jiu, after spending so many years in the qiu household, forgot how the cold seeps into your skin and bones without solid walls to keep out the frigid breeze.

he quickly falls ill with nothing to protect him from the elements but his threadbare clothing, and when he grows ill, he becomes slow. shen jiu nearly gets caught stealing, running away before he can be dragged to a town guard for his offence, but earning himself a nasty wound to his leg as he retreated

sickness + the cold + the wound leave him weak and wanting: missing qi-ge, reminiscing on nights where they'd curl up together for warmth, still cold but not alone, the two of them steady against the storm that raged on ahead of them

fever-ridden and teetering close to death, shen jiu wanders into a temple late at night and sinks to his knees, falling to his side, heart-rate slowing. in his delirium, he misses the figure taking shelter from the storm in the corner, watching him

shen jiu wakes up (he doesn't expect to), warm while he hears the wind whistle. he's still in that temple from earlier, but it's considerably... cozier. a small fire warms the inside and his clothes aren't as damp against his cold skin. his fever's broken, too—he doesn't know how long it's been, but he's glad he didn't die: never realized that he wanted to live until he was close to forfeiting his right to

here is where he meets his accidental saviour: xie lian stood over a slowly bubbling pot of stew that smells heavenly to shen jiu—he'd eat just about anything at this point, starved

his immediate distrust of xie lian stops him from being truly excited about his appearance

their relationship is veryyy shaky at the very beginning: shen jiu refuses to trust him and xie lian refuses to abandon this strange child he found on the verge of death

(there's a strange sort of bond built up when you nurse someone back to life, dragging them away from the brink of death and xie lian isn't interested, but he's curious about this kid who stumbled into his temple at the dead of night on a midnight in winter)

shen jiu's torn between distrust and this desire for company he didn't know he possessed; after being alone with no one but the qiu household [before he went on his massacre] he didn't realized how much he wanted to share space with someone who wasn't actively hurting him until he was afforded the opportunity to experience non-violent company with xie lian

his distrust slowly declines when he finds out that xie lian is a cultivator. despite being arguably too old to learn cultivation to the fullest extent he could have if he started a few years earlier, he still desperately wants to learn

xie lian, perceptive as ever, slowly starts teaching him bits and pieces of the basics, teaches him to meditate, takes care to keep his distance when it looks like shen jiu's getting overwhelmed

shen jiu can't help but get attached. he hates it

shen jiu decides to test xie lian before resigning himself to this

he was snappy, impatient, and argued with xie lian, when he came over, one day, waiting for some form of punishment to come, bristling like a spooked cat.

nothing came of his experiment but a slight frown from xie lian, which made shen jiu feel almost bad—xie lian almost reminded him of qi-ge, which made him feel doubly bad because he desperately wants to find him

shen jiu came to xie lian the next day with a pastry [that he stole] as an apology. and a request:

"teach me how to cultivate so i can be a disciple at the cang qiong sect"

xie lian agrees easily enough: he's been around shen jiu to see that despite the late start, he has potential to be great [especially untouched by wu yanzi and his twisted form of cultivation]

shen jiu throws himself into his studies, working himself to the bone

xie lian is concerned by this and after trying to soften the load of his work doesn't make shen jiu slow down, he becomes stern: warns him against trying to chase too much frivolously

this leads to a breakdown of sorts—where shen jiu gets angry, dismissive, before becoming upset. the average emotional depth of a teenager but, like, 4 times worse because of the circumstances

xie lian coaxes the story out of shen jiu here; qi-ge [the first time he's mentioned aloud by name], the qiu household [only the barest of details. shen jiu refuses to dwell], and the night shen jiu made qi-ge leave, as well as qi-ge's promise to come back

shen jiu finishes by telling xie lian he needs to make it back to qi-ge, needs to see if he's still alive, he's been selfish for sticking around as long

shen jiu tells xie lian that he needs to figure out as much as he can, as fast as he can, so he can leave and make his way to cang qiong mountain with some sort of base knowledge to make it in. and that he's not sorry for pushing himself because he doesn't have time

xie lian is quiet for a while

puts a comforting hand on shen jiu's shoulder and tells him he understands; he knows someone who would do anything to make it back to the one they loved, understands the pain that comes when time and distance separates the two

however, xie lian tells him, he can't let shen jiu push himself. he'll only stunt his progress by hurting himself rather than speed things up

shen jiu is ready to argue again before xie lian offers to make the trip with him

shen jiu doesn't believe it at first—who would bother with helping him for this long if they weren't getting anything out of it? he already found this hard to believe, let alone the fact that xie lian would drop everything to travel with him for weeks on end

xie lian doesn't shake in his resolve, though. shen jiu figures out he's being serious and wants to argue, but he's just—relieved

so many people have stood as roadblocks on his path back to qi-ge; xie lian might be the first person actively trying to help them

it almost reignites hope in him; someone other than him believes in them. someone other than shen jiu thinks they'll make it back to each other and succeed in reuniting. xie lian's faith in him is like a gust of wind beneath his wings

he agrees to their road trip

[xie lian makes sure to tell his beloved he'll be away for a while]

[shen jiu doesn't notice that xie lian buys steamed buns off the same stranger in nearly every town they stop by for a night of rest in the following few weeks]

[xie lian notices, years later, when shen qingqiu doesn't recognize him upon their first meeting in decades. shen yuan doesn't know xie lian, but xie lian knows this isn't shen jiu, anymore]

#i've had this idea in my head for a few months now #only just finding the time to write everything out #i'll write this on ao3 eventually! trust me i will i promise just need to defeat exams first #hua cheng stalking xie lian w a forced smile on his face: who the hell is this fraud and why is he stealing my husbands attention #xie lian with a happy lil smile: theyre just like us san lang he's learning cultivation to find and protect his beloved isnt it so wonderfu #hua cheng letting go of the steamed bun smushed to pieces in his hand: ah yeah sounds great. sooo cute gege. come home soon. Please. ^_^ #xie lian meeting shen jiu: what a lovely young man #shen jiu half feral and armed with the worst attitude known to man: who the hell is this fraud #svsss #tgcf #mxtx #shen jiu #shen qingqiu #xie lian #hua cheng #svsss au #svsss fanfiction #scum villain #scum villain self saving system #the scum villain's self saving system #heaven official's blessing

[sweepingboy]

Feng Xin and Xie Lian remember their childhood with warmth, as a time when they didn't have so many worries.

Mu Qing prefers not to think about his yearly years at all.

The same events evoke completely different emotions in them. Feng Xin and Xie Lian talking about the luxurious feasts in the royal palace feel nostalgic and Mu Qing thinks about the greasy looks that some noble guests would throw at the pretty servant, sleepless nights spent washing the magnificent clothes on which the prince accidentally spilled a drink or dripped sauce and how after barely resting he will prepare the morning outfit for the prince as a day of grueling training awaits them. He remembers the cold tone of the guoshi, tryings to slip away from a group of bullies and work work again.

He recalls waiting for the week to end so he can return to his poor little house and feel the warmth he's been dreaming of as he hugs his mum tight.

#people tend to overlook that mu qing was working and training (just as hard as xie lian) at the same time #mq barely had a childhood #fx was working for xl too but admit it he had it way easier? like xl was a skilled warrior too and could protect himself #so mostly he was just tagging along #and mq was there tasting the whole pallette of child labor #and i hate the argument that fx was xl's servant too but he isn't bitchy about it #my friend even tried to convince me he wasn't a nobility #my sibling in dao do you really think they would trust some random guy with prince's life? #tgcf mu qing #tgcf #he tries not to mention it because he has a feeling they would be upset with him #mu qing #mxtx tgcf #feng xin #tgcf headcanon #wtf is wrong with my tags

[leawesomesloth]

-safe-

Have to sleep early today so just dropping this quick sketch inspired by this cat video I saw on Twt 😭

#xianle trio #xl3 #Xie Lian #feng Xin #mu qing #fengqing #tgcf #天官赐福 #digital art #fanart #sketch #art farts #doodle #heaven official's blessing #tian guan ci fu #babies #besties protecting their f-f-friend

[illuminatedferret]

I really love how full of thematic foils, parallels, and mirrors TGCF is. It's very fitting that the person who finally points out "you know those are his ashes, right?" to Xie Lian is Ling Wen. Especially that she brings it up as they discuss the Brocade Immortal and her feelings towards him. The things she did using his devotion to her. It's such a minor thing, but of course Ling Wen would be the one to recognize such devotion between others.

Xie Lian could have used Hua Cheng to get ahead the same way Ling Wen used Bai Jing, but he didn't. Hua Cheng is more valuable to Xie Lian for who he is than what he can do. What matters is you, and not the state of you, yeah?

#tgcf #xie lian #ling wen #tian guan ci fu #heaven officials blessing #heaven official's blessing #illuspeaks #the brocade immortal is really interesting for the implications around its creation #i wish we knew more about it #like it was made consensually out of bai jing's ashes. it was meant to protect ling wen #how did she lose it? how did she feel about it? #a man is willing to do anything to protect the one he loves #even become an object for her use

[halomix]

puppet and puppet master | ch. 143

based on favorite underrated line:

“Of course. This is my puppet. Besides, he’s got quite the temper. No one but me can touch him—otherwise, he gets very angry.”

Hua Cheng quirked an eyebrow, and the ghosts laughed out loud.

…

(“San Lang only likes when I touch him”… OK dianxia 🫣)

#2023 #halomixart #rkgk #tgcf #heaven official’s blessing #xie lian #hua cheng #hualian #the dialogue a few lines later where Hua Cheng gets protective and calls Xie Lian is treasure is also so cute #i just dont see many people talk about this line sadly 😭😭 #they are both protective and possessive of each other!!! #i like baby hua cheng very much #i get cute aggression from him so much #composition looks earily like mona lisa #who painted the mona lisa

[maedre13]

What Feng Xin and Mu Qing saw:

What Xie Lian saw:

#this scene has killed me. it has killed me!!!! #THE WAY HUA CHENG HOLDS XIE LIAN'S WRIST AND HIP #the first gesture could be so easily understood as a threat BUT THE HIP HOLD #oh god it is so soft so gentle #the way his moves shift from threatening to holding protectively nggghhh #Fengqing are living their worst nightmare while Xie Lian lives his dream #that catch-me-if-you-can challenge at the end #tian guan ci fu #tgcf #heaven official's blessing #maedre13

[mewtwo24]

Okay but like. Two things about the volume 8 statue [redacted] chapter.

Firstly. By god no amount of "yeah it was unhinged" comments on this website prepared me for whatever the fuck that was. I need at least 5 business days to process.

Second, was I the only one who read that scene as:

Hua Cheng, teeming with self-satisfaction to see Mu Qing near writhing with scorned disgust and fury: this was a 100% successful trip

Xie Lian: our statues are fucking in Mu Qing's palace oh god oh fuck what do you m e a n successful

Hua Cheng, smirk getting even bigger: this was a 100% successful trip

#tgcf #volume 8 spoilers #hualian #hua cheng #xie lian #mu qing #hua cheng really out here like 'it's called christening the heavens with our love which is more than you lot deserve.' #nothing could have prepared me for how that scene played out #hua cheng how does it feel to win every single day of your deceased life #mf thought he was going to be humiliated in front of his lifelong crush/sworn love #only to instead watch one of his love rivals tangentially humiliated by XL's (hualian POST-COITAL) overwhelming spiritual power no less #I have never witnessed a bigger W in my life holy shit the way that boomeranged #I just can't get over how funnily hc's built I swear to god it ends me every time #mfer was born and literally nobody liked that. baby boy suffers for most of his life #fast forward to ghost hc. master of cataclysmic power and protecting his loving failwife (who is basically full of aged weird girl energy) #said weird girl energy being hc's salvation because xl saw him feral and unhinged and legit went 'i like him i'll let him tear up the couch #for 800 y e a r s hc pined and nourished his love--waiting for his opportunity #thusly leaving every single one of his competitors for xl's attention in the dust (not that they were much to write home about) #hc is like the definition of 'bide your time and fucking destroy' #i don't care what anyone says he's legitimately one of the coolest characters i've ever seen #i also can't get over hua cheng straight up being like 'xl in distress? we all know who this is a job for. M E' **builds hc statue** #without an ounce of hesitation #the way i love this mfer he's so sweet and so funny at the same time nobody doing it like him #i also love mxtx's passion for the dynamic of “GET RID OF HIM HE'S A MENACE” “no he just needs enrichment let him be" #why bingqiu and hualian will live forever in my heart

[silverstark]

I love how both Xie Lian and Hua Cheng embody “a sword in one hand, a flower in the other.”

#HuaLian #Xie Lian #TGCF #Hua Cheng #‘crimson rain sought flower’ is just another way of saying that #and Hua Cheng means flower city. the fortress built to protect the flower #and Hua Cheng is the ‘Hua’ the God-Pleasing Crown Prince held in one hand while fighting with the sword in his other hand #there’s lots of meta about Hua Cheng being a bad person and he says it himself #but to me it’s nature vs nurture. in which Xie Lian nurtured. #AND; CRUCIALLY; what Hua Cheng chose to nurture matters #what Hua Cheng chose to worship matters #the one god he worships is the compassionate kind people-saving god #the noble gracious special someone #and that says a lot about him #re-reading Book 2 it's striking to me that Hong-er heard from XL himself that he doesn't want to be worshipped through cruelty #He saw how angry XL was about QR hurting someone even when it was in his name #(notably; Hong-er also heard/witnessed XL being told he was in trouble over his choices in the parade) #(this isn't about just/proportionate revenge like the 33 gods: XL said that they didn't deserve to be gods and HC carried out his justice)

[fortune-maiden]

Random TGCF Thought of the Day:

a young kinda bratty Pei Xiu pestering General Hua for swordplay lessons

That is all

#(so he can protect Banyue obviously) #(but also I just think it would be cute) #random tgcf thoughts #tgcf #tian guan ci fu #pei xiu #xie lian #maybe xl shows him like 1 move one time and he remembers it #because he is a prodigy (or like lqq it just made a very strong impression) #I feel like px is the type to hide his strength so wouldn’t go all out if others are watching #but one day circumstances demand he use that move #and fengqing recognize it….

[yea-baiyi]

anyway the tgcf extras had hua cheng carve a statue of himself and even his first attempt was a pretty decent likeness except in xie lian’s words, “slightly less handsome”. then he proceeded to carve 10,000 statues of himself at all stages of life which xie lian found perfectly acceptable, meaning he stopped seeing/depicting himself as ugly. it’s there in the book hua cheng doesn’t think he is ugly anymore that was 700 years ago can the fandom stop saying he hates himself now

#hua cheng #tgcf #tgcf meta #my hyperfixation demon #STOP SAYING HE HAS LOW SELF ESTEEM HE DOES NOT HAVE LOW SELF ESTEEM HE GREW OUT OF IT #HE THINKS HES HOT SHIT NOW #CUZ HE IS #but he also can see the beauty in his younger self now #he had to carve a statue of himself to match each xie lian statue #so he had to carve images of himself throughout his LIFE #and GUESS WHAT NONE OF THEM DEPICTED HIMSELF AS UGLY BECAUSE XIE LIAN WOULDNT HAVE STOOD FOR IT OTHERWISE #sorry like. ya he expresses an insecurity ONCE. that xie lian immediately knocks aside and hua cheng laughs and agrees he was being silly #and there we have TEXTUAL EVIDENCE IT COULD NOT BE MORE BLATANT #huff puff sorry i’m protective of my boy

[yeonslayjun]

Mu Qing Kicked him out I JUST KNOW IT

and if it is him I'm Gonna be so mad like bro he is a literal child why you jealous of him?!?!?!

#I don't trust mu qing #honger protection squad assemble lol #hong hong er #hong er #heaven officials blessing #hua cheng #hualian #tgcf #tian guan ci fu #mxtx tgcf #xie lian #san lang #crimson rain sought flower

[antithcsis]

Hua Cheng held Xie Lian tightly and spoke in a low voice touched by despair. "I couldn’t get into the Kiln no matter what I tried, and you had to break out on your own! I'm so fucking—" "San Lang, it's okay—it's really all right!" Xie Lian said quickly. "Besides, I didn't break out on my own! […] You helped me. Look.”

Hua Cheng assured him next to his ear. "Don't ever be afraid—I'm right here beside you!" Hua Cheng was right behind him, his hands steady on Xie Lian's waist. He was just one person, but to Xie Lian, it felt like the entire world was supporting him. He breathed in deeply and closed his eyes.

When he looked back, Hua Cheng grasped his shoulders. "Fight freely! It'll be fine-none of them are a match for you. Nothing in this world can stop you!" His chest was the strongest backing in existence, and in an instant, Xie Lian was brimming with confidence. A refreshing current flowed through his body, and he struck back with all his might.

three times in book 7 that hua cheng was by xie lian’s side the moment he needed it

#they’re so domestic coded #but also love of a lifetime coded #xie lian going from having no one to always having that one person be there for him 😭😭😭 #protecting him no matter what 😭😭😭 #these two make me sick #xie lian #hua cheng #hualian #tgcf #heaven’s official blessing

[immortal-gege]

I know that Hua Cheng is a chaotic neutral whose morality starts and ends at Xie Lian, and in other matters he usually just helps or harms on a whim depending on his mood, but I do think it is a bit interesting that at Tonglu he protected a group of humans, even to the extent of tearing out his own eye to create a weapon that would help them survive.

Also, it's shown multiple times that he places a lot of extra care in the "flower" part of the "sword in one hand, flower in the other." He daily replaced the flower on crown prince statues as a kid, and as Wuming he gave Xie Lian a flower when Xie Lian was at his darkest. He may not be kind and caring himself but I think he really, really values that in Xie Lian.

#tgcf #tgcf meta #kind of #idk i think in some matters he asks 'wwxld' #what would xie lian do #he would protect these humans so i will too #tho of c other times he's like. xie lian will not look out for his own best interests so I will #or xie lian will not seek revenge so I'll do it on his behalf bc I'm not so forgiving