#the donghua tackled this so differently | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

rosethornewrites · 2 years

Text

Fic: Operation Barking Dog, ch. 5

Additional Tags: Family, Mutual Pining, Wèi Yīng | Wèi Wúxiàn Has a Fear of Dogs, Repaying Debt, Regret, Phobias, Trauma, Memories, Tree Climbing, There Was Only One Bed, Travel, Jiāng Chéng | Jiāng Wǎnyín in Seclusion, Cynophobia, POV Third Person, POV Lán Zhàn | Lán Wàngjī

Summary: In a world where Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji didn’t have drunk sex and there was no confession in the temple, the pining continues as they travel across Jianghu post-canon. In which Wei Wuxian learns Mo Xuanyu adored Xianzi (Fairy) and decides to honor him by again attempting the impossible: curing his cynophobia. Largely novel and donghua canon. Very loosely based on an @angstymdzsthoughts post.

Notes: See end for chapter notes.

AO3 link

------------

The spirit at the farm, as it turned out, was not Lao Po’s grandson, but her late husband, who simply wanted her to know the location of his stash of tael. He’d been saving to take her on a trip to the city where they met when he died suddenly, and in the intervening years she had not stumbled upon the hoard, and he grew more and more frustrated that he couldn’t tell her its location so her last years could be comfortable.

He didn’t have any resentment once the money was found, simply wanted his wife to know he loved her and hoped they would be together in their next life. Then he gave Lan Wangji a list of repairs the small cottage needed and asked him to help.

Mice are getting into her millet from the hole in the back of the cupboard, he relayed through the guqin. And there’s a leak in the roof near her bed. Makes the whole house damp. Unhealthy.

Wei Ying was, of course, excited to help, flashing a bright grin as they got a list of supplies that were needed and walked the several li into town to retrieve them. Though the elderly widow had pressed part of the stash of tael into his hand to pay for it, Lan Wangji had no intention of using it, and he would ensure it was returned to her later when Wei Ying had her distracted.

The remainder of the morning was spent listening to Wei Ying chatter about everything and nothing as they worked on repairing the little cottage, and Lan Wangji endured his zhiji stripping to his inner robes atop the roof as he repaired it, nails poking from his mouth as he worked. Passers-by stopped to help for a bit, even, given that Lao Po was well-loved as an elder in the community and no one had known of the disrepair—and when they heard of her late husband having stayed behind to try to help her, word spread.

Before long, nearby families were arriving with freshly-made baozi and other foods for lunch, the husbands helping tackle the different tasks based on what they were most skilled at, and the work was finished by early afternoon, turning the gathering into a picnic in Lao Po’s flower garden, waning in the last of autumn.

As this went on, well-wishers had him pass their love along and asked questions—one even asking for the recipe for the sweet wine the community had been missing since his passing. Lan Wangji dutifully translated the recipe, and even Wei Ying pulled out a piece of parchment from his sleeve to write it down. He would need to remember to buy a nice variety of fruit when they returned to Gusu, though he would perhaps have Wei Ying brew it beyond the barrier to the Yunshen Buzhichu.

Maybe, if Shufu ceased harassing Wei Ying.

In the end, Lan Wangji translated the spirit’s last loving thoughts to Lao Po and hers to him, to and from guqin, his ears burning at how closely they resembled his own thoughts, particularly during the years of Wei Ying’s death. When they were ready, he and Wei Ying played ‘Anxi’ together to liberate Lao Po’s husband, so that he might rejoin the cycle of reincarnation and perhaps would meet her again in their next lives.

As sometimes happened in these cases, Lao Po’s grief was refreshed by having had the opportunity to speak with him and yet having to let him go again as well. She thanked them profusely through her tears, falling over herself trying to repay them, and the locals who were still present, many of them her children and grandchildren, took over to tend to her grieving. They, too, were grateful, showering them with praise that was sometimes embarrassing in nature. Wei Ying never took praise or being thanked easily, and Lan Wangji was for once grateful for it, as he managed to extricate them from the household as courteously as possible.

By the time they headed back to the Hu farm, the sun was starting to set, glancing beautifully off the multicolored leaves of the trees surrounding the road, and Wei Ying wondered aloud if there was a stream nearby where he could bathe.

“There’s nothing like a nice cool stream after working up a sweat,” he said, sounding contented with the day, and in the next moment he was crashing through the undergrowth by the road, having spotted one.

Lan Wangji froze for a moment, almost not daring to think—surely Wei Ying didn’t intend to strip? Though he had been accused of prudishness in the past, each time he saw expanses of Wei Ying’s skin his body reacted, and the last thing he wanted was to chase away what they had with his desires; his loss of control at the Baifeng Shan hunt was still, so many years later, a source of great shame, and he feared Wei Ying’s disgust if he were to ever learn the truth.

But he couldn’t help but follow Wei Ying, always, having failed to do so in his first life, his failure leading to his death. He knew Wei Ying didn’t blame him, no matter how much he blamed himself, but he had promised when against all odds Wei Ying lived again that he would follow him to the ends of the earth if necessary, without hesitation.

So of course Wei Ying stripped to just his trousers, the only strip of cloth left on his body aside from the ribbon in his hair, and Lan Wangji endured, clutching Bichen like a lifeline, his eyes carefully averted—though that did nothing to stop his ears from burning at just the knowledge of being in the vicinity of a nearly-nude Wei Ying.

The last time this had happened had been the cave with the Xuanwu, with Wei Ying’s first body. Though Lan Wangji had seen him in this new body in various states of disarray, particularly after injuries, this was different, in that the focus wasn’t now on healing, but recreation.

Given that he had once bitten Wei Ying in an attempt to confess, he wasn’t certain he trusted himself.

“Aren’t you hot, Lan Zhan?”

He managed to hum a denial, telling himself it was true even as his ears burned. In one sense it was—his body was not overheated, his jindan keeping it at an ideal temperature.

Wei Ying accepted the answer without comment, going back to his chatter, splashing a bit as he bathed. He spoke of where he learned to repair things—having done odd jobs as a street kid, as a disciple’s duties, rebuilding Lianhua Wu after the war, in Luanzang Gang…

He trailed off in the middle of recounting something involving Uncle Six and an argument over roof structure, and Lan Wangji turned toward him unthinkingly.

His eyes were unerringly drawn to the muscles that had formed in his still-lithe body, it’s emaciation having been carefully corrected in the time since it became his, healthy and sturdy in a way that reminded Lan Wangji in some ways of his first body, though he no longer had the height or build he had once glimpsed in Muxi Shan before they fought the false Xuanwu so long ago. He also didn’t have the Wen brand scar. It was good to see him healthy.

Sitting in water halfway up his chest, Wei Ying’s expression was slack, his eyes unfocused, lost in memory, in grief.

“Wei Ying?”

Lan Wangji watched as he jerked minutely, blinking to awareness, his expression twisting into a forced smile.

“I’m fine, Lan Zhan.”

He was not, Lan Wangji knew, but he didn’t know how to address the issue in a way that wouldn’t cause Wei Ying to shut down, shuttering his emotions in self-defense. He had never had the time to grieve any of what he had lost in his first life, too busy trying to survive and be strong for the sake of others.

The rest of Wei Ying’s bath was silent aside from the splashing of water, and before long his zhiji was dressed and ready to continue to the Hu farm. Lan Wangji listened to him as his chatter started up again, now about talismans for repelling resentful energy and their use for the common people to prevent problems before they arose and save lives.

Hu Ning rushed to them when they appeared on the road, smiling widely, the runtling in her arms, talking about how she heard they helped Lao Po, which meant word had spread in the community and others might come to them for help. That would simplify matters quite a bit when it came to taking care of any spirits or yao for this area.

“Mama’s cooking a feast to thank you,” she finished as they reached the farm.

She held the puppy out to Wei Ying, as though to encourage him to take it, and when he balked Lan Wangji stepped forward to take the little creature, which fit in the palm of his hand, though that was no measure given that he had large hands. It was awake, but its eyes were still shut, and it nuzzled around the front of his hanfu as though looking for a way in.

This seemed to embolden Wei Ying a bit, who stepped closer and tentatively touched the puppy, which immediately leaned into the touch, seeking warmth—and though he flinched back at first, Wei Ying recovered to pet it more firmly. Lan Wangji was gratified that his zhiji felt the puppy was safer if he was holding it, an indication of trust he would do everything not to betray again.

The puppy licked at Wei Ying’s fingers, and he giggled uneasily and pulled his hand away as though burned, but quickly moved back in to touch it again as though challenging himself, this time away from the mouth.

“She’s probably hungry again—she sucks fingers when she’s hungry,” A-Ning offered. “Baba said she’s a girl puppy.”

Lan Wangji put a finger in front of the puppy’s mouth, and she did just that, suckling as though to feed. Wei Ying looked at him wide-eyed, clearly shocked he would put his finger at risk, his hand stilling.

“No teeth,” he reminded, “so she cannot bite.”

He wasn’t sure Wei Ying’s phobia was susceptible to logic—fear didn’t tend toward the logical, after all—but his zhiji surprised him, seeming to come to a resolution, and held out his cupped hands for the puppy. His body language implied he was resisting the urge to run, tense and shifting minutely even as he beckoned for the puppy. Lan Wangji waited a beat, removing his finger from her mouth, then when he didn’t balk gently transferred the tiny creature to him, keeping his own hands close in case Wei Ying’s fear overtook him.

Though Wei Ying’s feet shifted, almost dancing briefly beneath him, he kept his hands steady, only shaking slightly as he drew the puppy closer to cradle her, Lan Wangji stepping closer in case he was needed.

“Oh, she’s so light,” he said after a moment, his voice distant with amazement, then jerked and choked as the puppy found his fingers and pulled one into her mouth.

Lan Wangji drew closer, reaching out with one hand to steady Wei Ying’s hands.

“She really doesn’t have teeth!” he murmured, looking up at him in wonder.

But Wei Ying was shaking a little in distress, trying to be brave through the fear, but at his limit—Lan Wangji could practically feel the emotions he was contending with, including frustration at his own fear of the tiny pup. The slight edge of hysteria in his voice didn’t escape his notice, either. A cold sweat was breaking across his brow.

He wasn’t willing to let his zhiji overwhelm himself, and so he gently took the puppy from him and handed her back to A-Ning. Wei Ying made no move to stop him, letting out a soft breath of relief, in fact, assuring Lan Wangji he had made the correct decision. This alone, after all, was major progress, and spoke of the possibility of success in at least lessening his fear of dogs.

“I’ll go feed her now,” A-Ning announced, then scampered back toward the cottage.

Lan Wangji wasn’t certain Wei Ying was in much state to face others, so he handed him the gourd of water he had refilled at the stream to give an excuse to linger.

He couldn’t help but notice the tension in his zhiji, even with the puppy out of sight, though he couldn’t be sure it was entirely fear—very possibly it could be frustration at being afraid of even such a tiny, toothless thing.

“We will stay as long as necessary,” he said; after all, they were traveling at their own pace across the jianghu.

Wei Ying’s smile looked fragile in the waning sunlight, but he nodded after taking a sip of water. Lan Wangji felt awkward, uncertain of what else he could do or say to reassure him, his desire to comfort him awkward as he could only think of what he would like to do: sweep Wei Ying into his arms, which would be inappropriate. He had confessed his feelings to Wei Ying over a decade ago—whether Wei Ying had been cognizant at the time or not, he wouldn’t assume—and he refused to cause him any discomfort over them now. The urge to hold him and reassure him was no less strong than it ever had been, but he would focus on measures Wei Ying would welcome.

When Wei Ying had sufficiently recovered, they headed to the farmhouse, where Hu-furen—who balked a little at the formal term of address—greeted them kindly and had one of the other children show them where to wash up before dinner.

Dinner involved meat seasoned well with a spice factor well within Lan Wangji’s tolerance level, which Wei Ying told him, knowing his lack of familiarity with meat, was pork belly, mixed with bok choy in a savory sauce, accompanied by a range of vegetable dishes and millet.

The family spoke during the meal, and Wei Ying accommodated and explained his adherence to his clan rule of no speaking during meals, then fielded the questions the Hu family had about the ghost, something that eventually shifted into a discussion of funerary practices among the gentry clans.

“The cultivation clans don’t burn joss and such, since everyone has a soul-calming ceremony as children, with the goal of a peaceful transition across the bridge into their next life,” he explained. “But people like me, who weren’t born to the clans and entered too late, didn’t get them, and it’s not unheard of for a cultivator with a soul-calming ceremony to die with enough resentment to linger anyway.”

Lan Wangji wasn’t terribly familiar with the funerary practices of the common people, but Wei Ying was absolutely correct about the cultivation clans. With minimal ability to deal with resentful spirits themselves, it certainly made sense that the common people would adopt these practices, often seen as mere superstition by the gentry, to try to keep their dead at rest without soul-calming ceremonies available. For them, it was a matter of practicality, appeasing potentially restless spirits through the burning of joss and other offerings to assure them they were not forgotten.

It lent a new context to the reaction of the junior disciples of the more rural sects to A-Qing’s death in Yi Cheng, certainly, who would know the girl likely had no soul-calming ceremony and would wish to treat her spirit as she would expect to be treated. That her injured spirit was traveling with Song Lan and the remnants of Xiao Xingchen’s soul would have meant little in the face of ritual tradition.

He could not help but feel uncomfortable with the memory of Wei Ying asking if he had burned joss for him, said in a joking tone that he knew now may have been meant to cover his true feelings, as to whether he had burned joss for him. Lan Wangji knew Wei Ying had not had a soul-calming ceremony, and yet he had burned no joss, left no offerings in the years of his death, though he had sought his zhiji’s spirit, hoping to liberate him if he was a resentful spirit, knowing all others would seek to eliminate him. Now he wondered if he should have done both.

“But Lao Ye wasn’t a resentful spirit, they said—he just wanted to help Lao Po,” one of the children protested.

“Yes, but the longer he stayed and his last wishes were ignored, the more restless he would become, and that restlessness turns to resentment and creates resentful spirits of benign ones,” Wei Ying told them gently. “So it was important that Hanguang-Jun was here to help liberate him.”

Once the meal was over, the family returned to the last of their chores before full dark fell, and Wei Ying insisted they visit Xiao Pingguo in the small stable. Lan Wangji brought out an apple for the grumpy donkey, who somehow managed to be just as ill-tempered as when he was being ridden on the road, though it clearly appreciated the apple.

Wei Ying chattered the entire time, sometimes scolding Xiao Pingguo for seeking more apples by nosing at their clothing, and he seemed much recovered from his earlier near-panic with the dog—but Lan Wangji knew that could easily be a sort of mask his zhiji tended to wear in an attempt to hide his struggles.

He quieted when they found A-Ning sitting under a tree near the shed feeding the puppy when they returned. She looked up at them with a smile as she placed the milk-soaked rag in the pup’s mouth.

“You don’t have to hold him,” she said, “just be near and watch him, and maybe that will help too?”

The suggestion was intelligent, and told Lan Wangji she had also noticed Wei Ying’s reaction to holding the puppy.

“Good idea, A-Ning,” Wei Ying said after a moment, then adjusted his robes to sit beside her.

The girl looked happy at that, shifting her attention back to the runt, which was completely focused on the milk-soaked rag, making little needy grunts as she suckled. A-Ning kept the pup on her skirts instead of the ground, which was no longer sun-heated, now too cold for her.

Lan Wangji commented upon it, and A-Ning complained of how hard it was to keep the puppy warm overnight.

“Mama has to heat the water bottle in the night a few times. I’m not allowed to use the fire. I’m too little.”

She sounds particularly put out over the last bit, at that age where children felt older than they were.

“I could make a talisman to keep it warm all night,” Wei Ying offered, already pulling talisman paper and a wrapped bit of cinnabar. “Let your mom know and bring the water bottle here so I can get it right.”

A-Ning immediately handed the puppy to Lan Wangji and scampered off. The pup let out a little distressed noise at the jostling, but settled easily against his fingers when he curled them around her.

“Aiya, all animals love you, Lan Zhan,” Wei Ying commented absently as he started writing his talisman. “Who can blame them!”

Lan Wangji made a noise of acknowledgment, watching him work with the talisman, writing one that was similar to ones he’d seen him use to keep bath water warm, though this one looked like it was meant to be less powerful—it made sense, a water bottle much smaller, and contained beside. Watching Wei Ying work on talismans never got old, allowing a glimpse into his brilliant mind, and Lan Wangji was again nearly overcome with with gratitude that his zhiji was back in this world, that his genius could shine and they could travel like this and bring light to the dark corners of the jianghu.

Almost too soon, A-Ning reappeared from the homestead, carrying a water bottle made of sturdy leather, corked to keep the water inside and designed for use as a portable water container as well as a warm compress for injury.

Wei Ying inspected it when she handed it to him, humming thoughtfully and murmuring about the material as he did, before setting it aside and examine the talisman he had created. He used his cultivation, the tiny almost-core that had been Mo Xuanyu’s, to remove several characters from the talisman. Wei Ying had worked with the basis of cultivation in his new body until a brand new jindan quickened in his dantian, something he had confessed, fighting emotion, he thought he would never feel again—in some ways he hadn’t, not in one life, anyway, not in his original body.

The absent humming turned to a familiar tune, and Lan Wangji’s heart throbbed briefly. He knew Wei Ying found the song a comfort, and he was glad of it, but it reminded him of why he wrote it, a love unrequited, a love he could never let go of, one he would and could gladly suffer if it meant he could walk beside his zhiji again, fulfilling their youthful promise as they had never been able to in his first life.

It hurt, but like with the whip scars that sometimes pained him, he let himself feel it and how it differed from the endless pain he had endured those thirteen years.

Wei Ying rewrote several characters on the talisman, shifting the focus and target a bit with the expertise of a master, and then looked at the finished product consideringly.

“I don’t want to accidentally ruin the water bottle—what do you think, Lan Zhan?”

Lan Wangji did not have the expertise with talisman work to make a true judgment—some of what Wei Ying had managed in the past had seemed impossible to him, but that was what Wei Ying was good at.

“I will purchase a replacement if necessary,” he said instead, going for reassurance.

The town up the road was large enough to have a decent night market, and he could easily fly the several li to it, even in the twilight, if needed.

Wei Ying smiled brightly at that, and affixed the talisman to the leather before activating it, and then after several seconds he let out a hum of satisfaction.

A-Ning took it when he handed it to her, her eyes going wide with wonder.

“It’s so warm! Just from that paper?”

“It’s more than paper,” he said, laughing. “It’s a talisman, and I’ll show your ma and ba how to activate and deactivate it so it’ll last for a bit.”

He kept talking, about how it used ambient qi and didn’t require a caster’s qi, A-Ning listening intently.

“So it’s magic,” she summed up, which was both accurate and not, but acceptable for a non-cultivator.

Wei Ying just smiled and nodded, used to a more simplistic worldview from mediocre people than Lan Wangji, no matter how much time he had devoted to going where the trouble was; he typically spoke little to the non-gentry except to gain information on cases, while his zhiji was much more social. A-Ning placed the water bottle next to Lan Wangji, and he gently lowered the puppy to it. She made little contented noises as she finished sucking the milk from the rag, and he glanced to make sure they didn’t bother Wei Ying, who was much closer to her now—but he watched her with a gentle smile.

“Yes, you have a nice warm bed, don’t you, xiao ta?” he cooed softly, his eyes sparkling like moonlight in the near-dark.

It was perhaps the most relaxed Lan Wangji had ever seen him around a dog, a possible indication that his cynophobia could at least be weakened.

“That’s a good name,” A-Ning commented as she took the rag to soak up more milk and put it back in the puppy’s mouth, the warmth keeping her content enough that she didn’t protest. “She can be Xiao Ta. She’ll grow up to be playful and energetic like an otter!”

Lan Wangji wasn’t certain the puppy’s survival was guaranteed yet, though Wei Ying’s invention had potentially made it more likely, but he said nothing, simply watching as Wei Ying blinked in surprise and then smiled widely.

“Well, I did say she looks like a baby otter, so it’s an apt name.”

He reached out, hesitating a few inches from the puppy and then petting down her back twice before pulling back.

“Feels like a baby otter too, with all that downy baby fur.”

His voice had a distant quality, as though mentally he was back on the riverbank invading otter nests as a child, but that was the sort of distance that didn’t worry Lan Wangji, unconnected to negative memories; at times when Wei Ying’s thoughts turned to dark memories, it felt like losing him all over again, and he was compelled by a deep need to intervene.

A voice called from the cottage for A-Ning, so she picked up Xiao Ta and tucked her into her robes, heading off with the warm water bottle and bowl of milk in her hands, leaving them alone in the darkness.

The moon overhead was a sliver, just past the new moon, barely adding light to that of the vast river of stars that stretched across the sky. Lan Wangji was reminded of various times in the past, when the light of a full moon illuminated them—their first meeting, especially.

Wei Ying’s smile was contented as he watched the sky, his posture utterly relaxed as he sat sprawled comfortably under the tree.

“I’m glad we were able to help Lao Po and let her speak to her husband,” Wei Ying commented. “It’s always nice when a spirit lingers out of love rather than resentment.”

It didn’t happen too often, mostly because by the time a sect was contacted, ghosts had become resentful and were lashing out. By that point, they were sometimes beyond communication, or their final wishes could not be honored as they wished, and at times, generations had passed so everyone they knew was gone.

“The joss…” Lan Wangji murmured without meaning to, and Wei Ying looked at him in some confusion before his eyes widened in understanding.

“I wouldn’t have received it, so don’t worry about it. I don’t know where I was, but I wasn’t resentful, Lan Zhan—I knew what my fate would be, the moment I saved the Wens and maybe even before that, but I had to do the right thing.”

Wei Ying’s smile turned a little sad.

“I just wish shijie and the Peacock hadn’t died along with all of us.”

He only rarely talked of this, of the deaths of Jin Zixuan and Jiang Yanli, though Lan Wangji knew it still weighed on him, Wei Ying’s only regrets about his first life—they had been terrible accidents, he knew, backlash from the defense against attacks on Wei Ying, and nothing he could say would alleviate his guilt. Mostly Wei Ying seemed to distract himself from memories of his first life, seeking to keep busy and active, but moments like this, in the quiet darkness of twilight, those memories bubbled to the surface.

“I looked for you,” left his mouth before he realized it, a secret he meant to never reveal.

Wei Ying blinked at him, eyes wide, waiting for a moment, but he seemed to realize he wouldn’t speak further.

“While I was dead?” he asked, but didn’t pause for Lan Wangji to answer. “Did you think I’d survived?”

Lan Wangji could feel his throat go tight at the question; in his darkest moments, trapped in denial, he had often thought that there was no way someone as bright and good as Wei Ying could be gone from this world, and he must be trapped in a terrible nightmare—surely he would wake and Wei Ying would be alive and safe at Lianhua Wu, the war having been another fabrication of his subconscious. And when the denial had faded, he wished it had not, for even the delusion was better than the reality. His only balm then was in the rescued A-Yuan, the last remnant he had of Wei Ying, raising him one of the only things he could do for his zhiji.

Aside from seek his spirit.

“If you were resentful, others would not seek to liberate you,” he finally managed, swallowing the remembered grief, bitter like bile.

A cool breeze was picking up, carrying the scent of rain, an indication of a possible overnight storm, but he made no move toward shelter, his attention on Wei Ying, whose expression was difficult to decipher.

He didn’t know whether Wei Ying knew of the jianghu’s failed attempts to summon his spirit so that it could be destroyed—though knowing of the Jin’s rot, it was more likely they’d do something worse, enslave his spirit somehow to force it to do their demonic bidding. Fortunately, Lan Wangji had still been in seclusion and hadn’t been forced to participate the first time, and Lan Xichen had made excuses for him at the subsequent attempts, likely wisely recognizing that it would be dangerous for the jianghu if anyone tried to force him to participate.

Given how often Lan Wangji had spent the last decade with his self-control frayed and close to snapping, Xiongzhang’s decision was wise. Though it was just as likely he worried that, if they were successful in summoning Wei Ying’s spirit, Lan Wangji would go against the orthodoxy to save what remained of him.

It was very good for the jianghu that they were unsuccessful.

“Ah, Lan Zhan,” Wei Ying said softly after a moment. “You really are too good.”

No, he wanted to protest, but his mouth would not move. He was but a flicker in the face of Wei Ying’s goodness.

Wei Ying stood before he could find his voice, batting the dust off his robes.

“It’s almost your bedtime, and it smells like it might rain,” he said brightly, offering his hand. “We should turn in.”

Once, a lifetime ago, Lan Wangji would ignore the proffered hand, but he didn’t hesitate to take it, let Wei Ying use the power of his new fledgling jindan to pull him onto his feet, and followed him to the storage shed without comment.

Usually Wei Ying stayed up longer than hai shi, fiddling with talismans or other cultivation projects that caught his interest. It was common for Lan Wangji to fall asleep to him humming softly and working to the light of a candle or talisman. Often the song he hummed was one intimately familiar, and it was a joy to fall asleep to the sound of it in his beloved’s voice, soothing him into peaceful dreams.

Tonight, Wei Ying readied for bed with him, and joined him on the sleeping mat, ready for rest. Today had been full of more than just travel, including physical labor that Mo Xuanyu’s body was unused to, something Wei Ying was slowly rectifying. Lan Wangji was certain facing his fear of dogs added to his exhaustion, as well.

They lay quietly, shoulder to shoulder under the blankets, the too-quiet dark pregnant with what was unsaid between them, almost oppressive. Drops of rain began to fall, a gentle xilihuala against the roof, but that only seemed to heighten the lack of all other sound.

“I wasn’t a resentful spirit,” Wei Ying said again finally, breaking the tension. “I don’t know what I was, aside from resting. When Mo Xuanyu summoned me, I wasn’t really happy about it. I wanted to go back to sleep. You know how I hate mornings.”

Despite the attempt at humor, it felt like a confession. Wei Ying had not wished to come back, wished to stay dead, in fact. That understanding was almost suffocating. Lan Wangji wanted to enfold him in his arms and hold him close, longed strangely for the nights just after Wei Ying’s return when he slept sprawled atop him pretending to be Mo Xuanyu. Instead he contented himself wrapping gentle fingers around Wei Ying’s slender wrist, his heartbeat fluttering under his skin. It felt like too much and not enough simultaneously.

“I am glad you stayed,” Lan Wangji managed after a moment, unable to say everything he wished to.

Wei Ying smiled at him in the dark, visible only because he was so close against his side, the warmth of him welcome.

“Me too, Lan Zhan. See you tomorrow.”

“En. Tomorrow.”

Lan Wangji lay awake in the dark longer than he was accustomed to, listening as Wei Ying’s breathing evened into sleep, feeling his heartbeat under the pads of his fingertips. Those rhythms combined with the sound of the rain steadily falling on the roof, the gentle rumbling of thunder, and eased him into dreams.

--------------

Anxi = Rest

Baifeng Shan = Phoenix Mountain

hai shi = the period of 9-11pm

jianghu = cultivation world

jindan = golden core

Lianhua Wu = Lotus Pier

Luanzang Gang = Burial Mounds

Muxi Shan = Muxi Mountain

Xiao Pingguo = Lil Apple

Xiao Ta = Lil Otter

xilihuala = the onomatopoeia sound of falling rain

Yi Cheng = Yi City

Yunshen Buzhichu = Cloud Recesses

My updates are going to take longer, more than likely.

Mental health isn’t good. My 18yo cat died in August, and while I adopted two kittens and love them I miss her terribly. I’m also looking at a possible career change, or at the very least getting a job somewhere else, requiring a move this summer either way. It’s become painfully clear that my current place of employment has quiet fired me, and I’m tired of being treated like a peon and being underpaid. And a bunch of other stuff I’ve been just pushing down for years. It’s like I’ve been keeping going for so long on autopilot.

Please bear with me. It’s a time of change.

#the untamed #untamed fanfiction #mo dao zu shi #mdzs #chen qing ling #cql #lan zhan #lan wangji #wei ying #wei wuxian #untamed fanfic #untamed fic #cql fanfic #cql fanfiction #cql fic #mdzs fanfic #mdzs fanfiction #mdzs fic #my fanfiction

4 notes · View notes

yusukenui · 3 years

Text

the bathtub scene... wei wuxian honey...

#the way that i am NOWHERE near this chapter and i read it oops #im on yiling wwx arc rn 🤭🤭 tenderness chapter one babeyy #but i was curious 😔👍🕊#at first i thought it was a hateful kinda papapa scene but like i didnt know lwj was drunk..#he has to be disappointed for sure... but to what extent..#im not gonna keep reading cause u wanna get there properly... but my whole heart 😭🕊#oh wwx honey.. we really in it now #but bruh not wwx sleeping til 7pm lmfao 💀💀 no wonder he wasnt tired... dumbass #and then jin ling at the barrier and the lxc too... whats the context #anyways tenderness... 🥺😭#the donghua tackled this so differently #i cant believe that in the novel wwx thinks abt his yllz days while hes knocked out post jin ling stabbing him #the manhua and the donghua pick it up in the same arc now that i think about it... but from way earlier..?#anyways im lost 💀#no waits it he gets stabbed and he dreams abt the cave and then everytging that goes down after...#but manhua tackles that as its own arc at the beginning #i dont even remember what the donghua did oops..#ill finish novel and THEN go back to donghua....#but thats a lie im also reading thousand autumns 😃🤞💀#the nerd talks #mdzs #it is 3 am however 😃🤞 so maybe not now afterall dgdkshksjs

0 notes

pair-annoyed · 4 years

Text

Anime I Watched This Summer

Summer 2020 has officially come to a close. It’s fall in Animal Crossing and the trees are beginning to turn. Much like quarantine, I spent a lot of my free time watching anime when I wasn’t stressing over starting college. Now that the school year has begun, I thought it would be nice to reflect on everything I’ve watched!

These Anime were seen between 6/14 - 8/31 (my Birthday!) and are listed in chronological order.

They will be rated on a 1-10 scale; 1 meaning complete garbage, 10 meaning masterpiece. I will offer my thoughts on what I did/didn't like about each show!

1. Bakemono no Ko - 8/10

This was such a great way to start out the summer! I love the dynamic between Kumatetsu and Ren. Overall its a little cliche, but it’s also very wholesome. It’s by the same studio that made Wolf Children (which I loved!). so I knew it was going to be good. My favorite aspect of this movie was its backgrounds and world building!

2. Wan Sheng Jie - 9/10

Oh my gosh! I know that this is technically a donghua, but its on MAL, so it counts. This show quickly became my favorite slice of life of all time. I adore the art style and all of the characters. The comedy, plot, and design blends so well together. Everything in Wan Sheng Jie feels warm and comfy. It’s also confirmed for a second season! After seeing its cliff hanger ending, I’m so anxious for what comes next!

3. Dororo - 7/10

I’ll be honest, I’m a sucker for studio MAPPA. I really liked the historical aspects of Dororo. From the outfits to the ways characters behave, its grounded in the constraints of feudal Japan. I would have given this show a higher score if it was a little more grounded in science. I feel like more time should’ve been given to the demons and antagonists of the show. Our MC was so over powered, which made the final fights of the series more lack-luster. I think its less of the anime’s fault and more because the original source material is from the 60s. That being said, I loved this show! It was cute and action packed. Though it isn’t perfect, it holds its own.

4. Bungou Stray Dogs - 5/10

The concepts and action are misconstrued in Bungou Stary Dogs. This is one of those shows that I chose to watch because it was all over Tumblr. The powers themselves are cool, but I can’t understand why this series is so praised. At it’s core its predictable and basic. The fights seemed low stakes and low energy. None of the humor really felt like it belonged. It tried too hard to be something it isn’t. I don’t think I’ll watch beyond this first season.

5. Kami no Tou - 4.5/10

First off, fuck Rachel, me and my homies hate Rachel. I really really had high hopes for Tower of God. It paves the way for Webtoon adaptations in the future. Its such a shame that this adaptation SUCKED. I have not read the source material, I’m going solely based on the anime. It wasn’t good? It was horrible. I hate Bam, I hate Rachel. I think all the characters expect Rak were awful. Please don’t make a season 2. Please. If you’re interesting in Tower of God, just read the webtoon.

6. Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun - 7/10

Shoujo anime is my guilty pleasure. I especially liked the way Gekkan Shoujo tackled Sakura and Nozaki’s relationship. Besides just the main characters, even the side characters were enjoyable! It was a fun and creative show. My only complaint is how dense Nozaki is, but I also absolutely love that part of him.

7. Jojo no Kimyou no Bouken (Parts 1-2) - 6.5/10

Jojo is not the saving grace of shounen anime. It isn’t something super revolutionary and it certainly will never be a 10/10. Part 1 was so slow and boring. Jonathan was just mediocre at best. I definitely liked Joseph a LOT more than Jonathan. Part 2 overall was much easier to watch than part 1. The fights are good, but there’s just something about Jojo that I can’t get behind. Although I’m completely bashing this series, I’m going to keep watching it. At this point, I wanna know what a stand is.

8. Clannad - 5.5/10

I was expecting Clannad to be sad, but instead I got a cute, slice of life, romance. It wasn’t unenjoyable, but it was also a pretty slow-burning show. I loved watching Nagisa and Okazaki slowly fall in love with each other. It was funny at times and sad at other points. I am currently watching Clannad: After Story (which I’ve heard is heartbreaking), so I’m hoping to get some catharsis out of that.

9. Otome Game no Hametsu Flag shika Nai... - 6/10

This show is only 12 episodes, and yet it still has filler episodes for some reason? I’m a person who doesn’t typically watch isekai because the genre is so over done. However, when it’s done in a very specific way it’s really fun to watch! This show was definitely a lot of fun, it’s also cute and has so many interesting character-character interactions. The ending is painfully cliche, but I think it adds to this shows charm.

10. Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai: Tensai-tachi no Renai Zunousen - 8/10

I loved Love is War so much! I love their weird romantic dynamic. I love the characters, and I love the animation. It’s over the top and executes it humor masterfully. The entire show fills you with anticipation for the two main characters. Kaguya is my favorite character. Although I haven’t seen season two yet, I most certainly will! I’m so upset I hadn’t seen this show sooner.

11. Great Pretender - 8.5/10

This show is so colorful and bubbly. The animation is so smooth and they are able to tackle so many different kinds of things given its plot. The whole show itself just feels like summertime. It came out not to long ago, so some people may not be familiar with it. On top of the show itself, the music is great, with a Jazzy OP and and ED that features Freddie Mercury

12. Steins;Gate 0 - 8/10

I loved the original Stein;Gate so much! So it’s no surprise how much I liked the second season. It builds significantly off the first season in a sort of “off shot” OVA kind of way. The events of Steins;Gate 0 don’t actually happen, but that doesn’t stop it from being meaningful. The big “twist” was predictable and a bit of a let down, but I still enjoyed this. Granted, I’m bias.

13. Seishun Buta Yarou wa Yumemiru Shoujo no Yume wo Minai - 9.5/10

I sobbed. So much. This movie was phenomenal, it was such a trip. Having watched the original series, this tore my heart apart. It gets a high score for being able to take the characters I love and creating a wonderfully emotional experience. If you haven’t seen Bunny Girl Senpai, please watch it, and then watch this movie. You won’t regret it!

14. Hotaru no Haka - 6/10

Grave of the Fireflies made me stop watching anime for a while. Studio Ghibli created something grim, something that leaves the viewers feeling hollow. Its a movie about WWII from Japan’s perspective. As an American, all I could feel while watching this was immense guilt. I will say though, that some of the movies main plot could have easily been prevented if the main character had swallowed his pride. His younger sister was also my least favorite character. I get that she’s a kid and that kids are fussy, but you would think that during wartime, she’d be more understanding and at least try to eat the things she dislikes.

15. Yagate Kimi ni Naru - 9/10

This was a great way to end the summer. This is more that just GL romance, its a love story. Its about growing up and learning to understand your feelings. I related to Yuu so much, which made this more emotional than I expected. It’s really unlike another romance anime I’ve seen. I hope it gets confirmed for a second season. If not, I’ll be reading the manga.

Seasonal Shows: (Things that are still airing as of 9/5/2020)

1. The God of High School 7.5/10

Another thing done by studio MAPPA. Are you surprised? I absolutely love the action in GoH. The plot however, is all over the place. The story seems fragmented and hard to follow. Like Tower of God, it was poorly adapted. I’m giving it such a high score, because it’s SO much more enjoyable then Tower of God.

2. Enen no Shouboutai: Ni no Shou - 4/10

My thoughts on season 2 are about the same as my thoughts on season 1. The only difference is that this season has more Jojo references. I’ve rated it lower because its so repetitive. I’m so sick of watching it, but I’ve got to see it through the bitter end.

3. Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu 2nd Season - 8.5/10

All I’m going to say about Re:Zero is that I love it. I can’t give an accurate review of it because I’ve been hyping this season since it was announced. If you’re into non-typical isekai, watch Re:Zero, its so enjoyable!

1K notes · View notes

plan-d-to-i · 3 years

Note

I wish MDZS would be more unhinged. Give us the fucked up Yunmeng trio consistently. Give us the fucked up siege thing. I watched anime like attack on titan and tokyo ghoul and I love how they just don’t censor or alter the gore (AOT at least) while both manga are horror straight up. MDZS is a horror of sort. Why the fuck is the great sects framed as heroes on the siege? vomiting on my mouth bc disgusting ew.

(this is about the mdzs donghua I think)

AGREEEEEED. Unfortunately in China they're working with different censorship laws and at this point with the recent controversies idk if anyone knows 100% for sure what the lines are. But like cql the donghua definitely worked to soften jc's character. Not as much as the shit job wzc did in cql and every time he's run his mouth about it in the years following to suck up to his stans- repeatedly proving he had no fucking clue what he was supposed to be portraying, but still... Look at the promo art. Why the fuck is jiang cheng in the bg of WangXian all the time?

I think 10cent just wants stan money -Judging from their bs cql social media posts. It remains to be seen how they'll tackle the ancestral hall/core reveal scene, the Guanyin Temple confrontation and finally the ending. Many people love the donghua. I like certain scenes but am mostly critical. That scene w the Clan leaders was laughable. Too bad they can't show jc crushing granny Wen's skull or Uncle Four's- then let jc stans try to say how it was just his tRauMa uwu. What am I saying it's not like it would stop them 🙃. They'd be like: uwu he killed her faster so she wouldn't suffer. Caring King taking care of his elders 🥺.

#mdzs #answers

72 notes · View notes

sleeplesscenarios · 3 years

Text

Big Eyes and Little Glasses random headcanons

aka Lang Qiao and Xiao Haiyang (from Mo Du) because they need more appreciation and content!! some very random stuff that popped into my mind while plotting, enjoy! (@9kghn i’m tagging you here too <3)

Look at their nicknames, they’re opposites of each other just like their personalities!

According to donghua team, Lang Qiao is 165 cm which is normal girl size and Xiao Haiyang is 192 cm which is fucking giant size. Also Lang Qiao is 2 years older.

So now Xiao Haiyang keeps calling her “Xiao-Qiao-jie" which is heckin’ cute and canonly makes Lang Qiao’s heart skip a beat and it’s especially cute because it has the “you’re older than me but you’re smol tho” meaning instead of the previous “you’re younger than me but i call u jie bc u work here longer”.

On that note, Xiao Haiyang is an awkward giant which means his posture is probably terrible and he’s always slouching. Imagine Lang Qiao just rambling about something and he’s blinking down at her because “*oh shit I have no idea what she said I was distracted by the smol & cute even tho she could kick my ass haha-* Yes, I was listening!”

Xiao Haiyang is terribly touch starved and doesn’t understand social cues and rituals which are very important to Lang Qiao, however, she’s luckily pretty flexible.

It could result in small fights but nothing an apology (instead of a 5 pages self-examination not even touching the important subject) can’t solve.

More on the touch starved point: I mean he’s just awkward and doesn’t really have friends so I imagine he’d probably freak out if someone let alone his crush touched him in any way.

Exhausted Lang Qiao resting her head on his shoulder and Xiao Haiyang doesn’t dare so much as breathe in fear of disturbing her.

Lang Qiao purposely flustering him by leaning a bit too close to him or just poking him.

Xiao Haiyang accidentally keeps flustering Lang Qiao because after she realizes her own feelings, even standing close to him can fluster her and she’s lowkey losing her mind about it.

Xiao Haiyang firm member of the “hugs are better than kisses” squad because he can occasionally get some hugs without having to admit his humongous crush.

Confessions can go two ways, no in-between:

1. Lang Qiao notices his very obvious crush, corners him and bluntly asks him about it (imagine normal sized girl kabedoning giant sized boy)

2. Xiao Haiyang rediscovers his courage and prepares a speech but his eidetic memory fails him and ends up being a stuttering mess then gets annoyed and just starts complaining how it’s unfair that she keeps doing this to his heart.

FIRST DATE WHILE WALKING AROUND GETTING STREET FOOD!!

After being in a relationship, Xiao Haiyang always buying little snacks for his girlfriend. He can’t get used to how “girlfriend” sounds. He also can’t get used to how “boyfriend” sounds from Lang Qiao’s mouth.

Xiao Haiyang constantly experiencing mini-heart attacks because Lang Qiao is too freaking cute and also pretty and hot and everything perfect.

Insecure Haiyang is a petty bitch who gives the silent treatment then starts yelling smh. Lang Qiao is having none of it and yells back. Xiao Haiyang ends up sitting on Luo Wenzhou’s couch asking Fei Du for help because he believes with all of his heart that every word of President Fei is the absolute truth. Fei Du teaches him the ‘immediately apologize then say I love you for good measure’ tactic – LWZ gets annoyed. It’s, however, successful.

Lang Qiao is ready to fight off everyone who would flirt with Haiyang but unfortunately, there isn’t really a competition so that one time, when they’re questioning witnesses outside and this girl takes a liking to Xiao Haiyang she’s ready to square up because finally she can establish dominance over her man. Poor girl.

Xiao Haiyang giving small presents for no special reason just because he remembered Lang Qiao said she wanted or liked them or just saw something that reminded him of her.

Cuddles are heaven because as stated above, Xiao Haiyang loves them and Lang Qiao would be more than happy to tackle her tall ass boyfriend any chance she gets.

On that note, BACKHUG BACKHUG BACKHUG!!

Also, piggy back rides because she’s tired from working and obviously can’t go from the parking lot to her door on her own feet, not if she has a boyfriend ready at the princess’ command. “Why are your legs shaking, I’m not that heavy.” “Well, you kind of are-” “Not another word or we’re through :)” “Yes, ma’am!”

Xiao Haiyang promptly changes his opinion about “hugs are better than kisses” after their first kiss which is either him awkwardly knocking their lips together or Lang Qiao grabbing his collar and pulling him down for a proper one (or both).

Lang Qiao going in to the office and casually pecking Haiyang on his lips, cheeks, wherever she can reach that morning. The whole office just stares. Xiao Haiyang is beet red. There are clapping and whistles. “Oh, shit I forgot we haven’t told them yet.”

“Imperial Father, may I ask for permission to court the Eldest Princess.”

Xiao Haiyang has all of these petnames in his head from the numerous sleepless nights he spent pining. Never gets to use any of them because Lang Qiao just calls him a little baby sarcastically and then he calls her a midget and they just know that there’s not gonna be any of that “love” and “darling” and “sweetheart” shit. (At least for now.)

Office romance is all fun and games until they move in together and realize that it was pointless, they spend 90% of their time in the bureau anyways.

On day offs they make attempt to cook something and Xiao Haiyang has a bunch of recipes in his head because he knows Lang Qiao loves trying new food but somehow, things go a bit different when he actually tries to cook. Kitchen is a mess, something is on fire, they spend the time they wait for take-out cleaning up.

There’s one time when Lang Qiao realizes she’s not wearing make-up because she just woke up and she can’t let Haiyang see her like that to which Xiao Haiyang just says, “You do know that I literally fell in love with you while you were running around the office with disheveled hair and bags under your eyes after pulling all-nighters, right?” “You sure know how to flatter a woman, huh?” XHY: *is this sarcasm or not, did I say smth wrong again???*

“Jie, I bought us a cat.” “Please tell me you’re kidding.” “No, Captain said the key to a prosperous relationship is a cat and you love cats and I was passing by a shelter so...”

Lang Qiao is constantly asking herself why she’s dating this walking disaster then she catches a glimpse of the light in Xiao Haiyang’s eyes when he just stares at her and sighs. Who could not fall in love with someone who looks at them with so much affection?

#mo du #silent reading #lang qiao #xiao haiyang #ship name???#that's all for now #yes i know it's xhy based #also i haven't explored how impulsive this guy can be but #this is a good start i think #no read more because i want everyone to read mo du and love this couple

40 notes · View notes

meltingheartsandcores · 4 years

Text

I had an idea and thought it was funny so:

This takes place after Cloud Recess but before the Wen stuff, WWX is visiting NHS in the Unclean Realm and they’re gardening. It starts with WWX POV and ends with WWX POV but the middle is mostly NMJ’s POV.

It’s a mix of MDZS Donghua canon and Untamed canon but it doesn’t really matter. The only difference is NMJ is clean shaven here.

It’s mostly one sided Mingxian with WWX talking about how hot NMJ is, so.

Enjoy?

“So, how has Madam Jiang and Jiang-Zhongzhu been?” Huaisang asks as the pair wade around the small pond.

“As good as they ever are.” Wei Wuxian groans, “Ai, sometimes it’s exhausting though. Madam Yu is always so angry with me and Uncle Jiang is always so lenient. Finding common ground sucks.”

“Have you told them this?” Huaisang asks, as if not telling your clan leader when you think they fucked up is foreign to him. Honestly, it probably was, considering Huaisang didn’t mince his words to his brother. Most of the time.

Wei Wuxian snorts, “You can’t just say that sort of stuff. It has to be polite and buried under six compliments and formalities. I mean, you wouldn’t tell Lan-Zhongzhu he’s stuck up, right?”

Huaisang giggles, ”I wouldn’t, but I wouldn’t put it past you though.”

Wei Wuxian rolls his eyes, “Yeah, well, maybe to annoy him. But as a legitimate complaint? Doesn’t happen. You don’t do that. Tell your Clan Leader when you have a problem with their attitude. Or anything that isn’t detrimental to your health. It’s just not done. You can’t speak freely to Sect Leaders.”

“You say that like you didn’t say upon meeting Dage, ‘Insanely hot, is this even possible? How can someONE!’” Huaisang’s imitiation of Wei Wuxian turns into a panicked shout when Wei Wuxian tackles him down into the shallow pond. Huaisang doesn’t stop, “‘How can someone be so hot? What God allowed-‘“ Huaisang trails off into laughter and Wei Wuxian gives him a noogie.

Not far, hidden by some decorative paneling, stood Nie Mingjue who looked onto the pair with amusement. He hadn’t been happy when he found out Huaisang had ditched Saber Training again to play in his garden, but friends were always nice to have.

“Why do you have to bring that up!” Wei Wuxian demands sitting in the pond beside Huaisang, keeping Huaisang’s head above the water as Mingjue’s brother just lays in the pond.

Huaisang laughs and Mingjue has a very bad feeling suddenly, “Because he forgot your name-“ Oh that little! “He couldn’t remember your name for an entire year and just called you,” Huaisang takes a break to laugh before finishing, “just called you Insanely Hot Guy. Obviously in reference to your first words to him, but Zonghui was so confused!”

“Ai, well, I am insanely hot.” Wei Wuxian states with no irony, and gets smacked in the face by Huaisang for his trouble. “Why is there even a pond here? I thought you didn’t have this stuff.”

“We didn’t. I made it!” Huaisang was incredibly proud.

“Why?”

“Because it’s pretty.” Huaisang sits up, but the hand Wei Wuxian had been using to support him follows so the pair end up sitting close together with Wei Wuxian’s hand on the back of Huaisang’s head. If Mingjue didn’t know his brother, he’d assume it was some intimate setting. “And! You always talk of how good Lotus seeds are, and how pretty the flowers are, and we could use some beauty here.”

“What, your brother isn’t enough?”

Huaisang sighs, “Why does everyone think Dage is so hot?”

“Because he’s tall, ripped, and could probably snap me in half without any real effort.” Wei Wuxian says with zero hesitation.

“That’s attractive?” Huaisang asks with clear disbelief. Mingjue was with him. The tall and ripped stuff he knew. The third thing was confusing him.

Wei Wuxian shrugs, “It is to me. Although I also love small scheming men who helped me shave off Lan Qiren’s mustache.”

“Ah! Not so loud!” Huaisang shushes, “Dage will be furious if he finds out I had anything to do with that!” Huaisang vastly overestimates how much Mingjue’s cares. And vastly underestimates how much he loved seeing the esteemed Grandmaster Lan with no facial hair. He’s such a baby.

“Fine fine. What was disturbing about that is that he’s hot. How can someone so hot decide terrible facial hair is the way to go? Huaisang, promise me you’ll never let Chifeng-zun grow terrible facial hair.”

“I’ll shave it off myself.” Huaisang promises. Well. There goes the plans for the mustache. Mingjue has no doubt Huaisang would sneak into his rooms and shave his face in his sleep. Furthermore, Mingjue’s not confident in his ability to say ‘no’ if Huaisang begs him and looks at him pitifully.

Actually, he’s entirely confident he’ll fold like a paper crane if Huaisang does that.

“Good.” Wei Wuxian stands up suddenly, “Now! You said we’re making a Lotus Pond? I can help with that!” Huaisang stands up too fast, looking very eager and happy, and upon trying to grab Wei Wuxian for stability, drags him back down.

Mingjue huffs a laugh at the scene, mostly because Wei Wuxian looks so disappointed in Huaisang, and apparently decides dumping a handful of water over Huaisang is entirely appropriate. Huaisang doesn’t even protest, or try to get back at Wei Wuxian.

Mingjue tenses when he hears familiar footsteps, he peers behind him and sees Elder Qin slowly making her way down the walkway. Thankfully, her sight was worse than Mingjues, so she does not see him. He was not waiting around for her to reach him though. He was avoiding her for a reason. Sucks to be Huaisang.

“Huaisang!” Mingjue yells, walking off the walkway and into the garden.

“Da Ge!” Huaisang calls with a yelp and both boys try to stand up but their legs were entwined from their previous fall and made them fall again.

“If you have time to garden you have time to practice your saber.”

“But Da ge,” Huaisang whines, and Mingjue doesn’t let him get another word in, silently picking Huaisang up by the back of his clothes, he doesn’t hesitate to grab Wei Wuxian by the back of his collar too.

“Uh, Chifeng-zun.” Wei Wuxian starts, clearly confused.

“Time to garden, time to train.” Mingjue repeats and walks away from the pond and Elder Qin.

Huaisang, used to this, had brought his legs up and essentially curled himself into a ball, Wei Wuxian, not so used to it, lets his legs drag a while before pulling them up as well. Normally Wei Wuxian would complain about how uncomfortable it was to be pulled by his collar, like he did with Lan Zhan, but right now, he has bigger problems. Well, not bigger, but more pressing problems he really doesn’t want anyone to notice.

Apparently another thing that made Chifeng-zun hot was his ability to pick Wei Wuxian up with one hand with barely any effort. Who knew?

#Untamed #MDZS #Nie Mingjue #Nie Huaisang #Wei Wuxian #NMJ #NHS #WWX #Mingxian #my writing #mini fic #Also #If anyone cares #my title for this in my files was Arm Strength Kink #Unbeta’d

78 notes · View notes

meichenxi · 4 years

Note

For the ask game! 9, 12, and 22?

Yay more askies :D this is going to be likewise long!

9) What does a week in your language learning routine look like?

- I’m not particularly disciplined in the way that I study, though I do tend to study most days. I’m very good at making plans but less at following them consistently, so this is a more realistic depiction of what I do!

- Because I’m currently studying with HSK Online and they have two classes a week which cover about 3 chapters, I have a lot of vocabulary and grammar that I need to cover in the app before attending those classes, so most of my studies at the moment are focused on getting that done. So:

Vocabulary and grammar:

(I do this all most days, depending on what exactly I need to do for the next lesson, but I try to do Quizlet every day)

1) I go through the vocabulary and grammar lessons, and write down the vocab and any example sentences.

2) When I input this into Quizlet, I use Baidu Translate to look at example sentences to get a better feel for how the word is used. I also write a couple of sentences / say a couple of sentences with each word. Baidu Translate is a fantastic tool, much better for Chinese than Google Translate, and it has an example sentences section where you can get the pinyin if you hover over the characters.

3) After I feel I vaguely know the words for that day, I will go back and actively study them on Quizlet. For any words I forget I’ll write more sentences, or look at more examples. If there are any grammar points, I look them up on Chinese grammar wiki.

Input and reading

(I don’t do these at any specific time, but luckily I quite enjoy this section so am very happy to Consume Media)

1) Try to read something every day. It doesn’t matter exactly what this is - often it’s Bilibili comments! I also like to skim through my graded reader and try to practice scan-reading.

2) I do dedicated HSK-style reading practice a few times a week as well. Again, I use the HSK Online app for this. It’s terrifying but necessary. This one I do have to motivate myself to do.

3) I watch a lot of Chinese shows. Some with English subs, some with Chinese subs. My favourites include The Untamed (obviously), Nirvana in Fire (will always need the subs for this rip), Tian Guan Ci Fu (a donghua on Bilibili) and Street Dance of China. I probably watch a good 5-10 hours of TV a week.

4) I learn other things through Chinese. So I watch lectures or courses on Bilibili or do workout videos. I especially like watching videos teaching beginners Cantonese and Japanese, two languages I am interested in learning, as well as Literary Chinese.

5) I listen to podcasts in Chinese when I’m walking around. My favourites include 聊聊东西, 听故事学中文 and 面包吐司. They are all in Chinese, but all specifically designed for foreigners, though the first and last are not learning podcasts, just podcasts of fairly accessible content where people chat about things like smoking, health, dating and so on. The second one is a podcast where stories are read in Chinese, and then explained sentence-by-sentence in Chinese, so it’s more ‘learning’.

12 - What tips would you give to people that want to study the language/s you’re studying?

1) It’s an uphill slog, but you’re at the hardest place right now. So if you feel discouraged, if you feel overwhelmed, nobody else got it after one month either! It will take time, but is there anything worthwhile that doesn’t?

2) Invest in good pronunciation training right from the beginning. If you can’t take classes, watch videos (YoYo Chinese, Outlier Chinese, Mandarin Blueprint etc have good tone series). Practice tone pairs. Tone pairs are your saviours. Practice repeating what the speaker actually says, not what you think they say. Learn a little bit about phonetics.

3) Listen to Chinese right from the get go, as much as you can. Listening is many people’s weakest area, especially if they are learning it in a non-Chinese speaking environment. Play podcasts all the time. Differentiate between ‘learning’ podcasts (which will mostly be in English at the beginning), and podcasts that just train your ear to the sounds of Chinese. Have Chinese podcasts on all the time, regardless of whether you understand them or not.

4) Invest in a structured course. I don’t necessarily mean classes with a teacher, though if you can I would recommend italki (feel free to contact me to see which teachers I’d recommend). But consider something like Chinese Zero to Hero, where they have videos explaining HSK1 through to HSK6. It’s about 100 dollars, but even if you have to save up for a few months to get that, I’d recommend it. Why? Because Chinese is overwhelming and there’s so much to learn. Having someone to tell you what you need to learn next is an absolute god-send. Plus, they know more than you what beginners need to tackle. They also have beginner-appropriate audio, which is absolutely crucial to learning to speak. I really would recommend this course.

5) Learn properly about how characters work from the get go. Learn about phonetic and semantic components. Learn what types of characters there are, learn the most common components, and learn to hand-write them too.

6) Record yourself speaking as much as you can. Play it back. How does it sound? Record it again.

7) Practice reading from the moment you have around 150 characters. There are excellent physical graded readers as well as apps like The Chairman’s Bao and Du Chinese. THIS IS SO IMPORTANT, PLEASE DON’T LEAVE IT OUT. It takes time for you to get used to reading in a second language, especially one with unfamiliar characters.

8) Decide whether you’re going for traditional or simplified, and stick with it. Do not learn both unless you have a very good reason. If you think you might go to Hong Kong or Taiwan, have family there, want to read literary Chinese, or even understand ‘deeper’ how certain characters have developed, you can learn traditional, but if you’re less than 100% sure, go with simplified. It’s easier for beginners, and if you have a good level of simplified Chinese, traditional isn’t that hard to pick up later down the line - some common characters are completely different, but many are different in very predictable ways. If you are not absolutely sure you are going to need traditional, I’d recommend simplified.

9) Really, really consider your motivation. Why are you learning? Do you just think it would be cool? It is cool, but that’s not enough of a reason to embark on any language, much less one with extra difficulties like Chinese. In an ideal situation, you’d be intrinsically motivated all the time: but that’s not always going to happen. Do you have Chinese family you’d like to communicate with better? Do you want to travel to a Chinese speaking country? Do you want to read Chinese poetry? Do you just really love Xiao Zhan?? If you’re doing it ‘for your career’, please bear in mind that you won’t get any points for learning half a language. If you’re not willing to engage with the culture and the people, you’re just not going to be successful long term.

10) Find things you like watching / listening to / reading in Chinese as soon as you can. Bored? Unmotivated? Stick a favourite episode of your favourite drama on. It still technically counts as immersion, and when your language skills are better, you’ll be able to use that as your textbook!! Try and find something that will make you want to read or listen in Chinese, and then it won’t feel like a chore. It’ll also become a motivation, because inevitably the more you explore the Chinese language internet, the more you’ll find things you can’t interact with in translation and need your language skills for.

22 - How has learning about the culture of the country impacted your language learning?

Hmm, this is a really interesting question!! I'll have to answer in a few ways.

1) I'm interested in a lot of things about Chinese culture, which fuelled my interest for learning Chinese, and also let me learn in a more fun way. I’m a huge tea nerd, I enjoy listening to Chinese traditional music though I know very little about it, and I enjoy calligraphy. I think that some hanfu is just objectively the most gorgeous clothing on the planet and I enjoy Chinese water-and-mountain style landscape art. I also love the karst landscapes of some parts of southern China (OH MY GOD LIMESTONE MY FAVOURITE ROCK) and I’ve had a faded picture of Zhangjiajie on my wall since I was about nine. This is very different from my experience with German: I love the German language, and I have a lot of great friends from German-speaking countries, but I’m not intrinsically interested in the culture the same way I am Chinese-speaking countries. Because there’s so much I want to learn, it gives me a) huge motivation for continuing studying, b) makes it a more holistic, rounded experience, and c) provides me with wonderful study materials. At the intermediate level, I can avoid textbooks if I really want to and just learn about tea. Isn't that just the dream. Also, realistically, if I want to be able to read poetry in literary Chinese, my modern Chinese has to be a lot better. So I’m very motivated because of this.

2) My interest in martial arts! I originally started learning Chinese because I had gotten interested in Chinese culture via wuxia and martial arts. My dad is a huge martial arts nerd. By that I don’t mean someone who sits on his sofa all day with a nunchuck collection and Bruce Lee pictures, I mean he gets up at 6 every day and trains for about 2-3 hours. He can run a 5:30 minute mile aged 56. I have so much respect for this man, seriously. He used to practice karate, taekwondo and Muay Thai, but after he got sick he started with taiji. He’s practiced taiji and qigong now every day for about twenty years. So I was brought up on a diet of Hong Kong and mainland Chinese martial arts cinema - my dad would regularly show me clips of films because I couldn’t watch the whole ones until I was older, and get into trouble when my mum came back! We spent hours learning forms together and doing push-hands in the kitchen. Even now when we go home our form of affection is trying to kick each other without being kicked back lmao. I discovered the Jin Yong books in English about 15 and was just entranced by the names of the movements, by the action, the galloping across the plains, the sweeping scenery. I have inherited this interest, and am also a huge martial arts nerd and so a large motivation for me learning Chinese is that a) I love the genre of wuxia and want to know more about it, and b) I’d like to spend a few years training at an academy in Wudang and want to be able to understand as much as possible and for that, I obviously need the language to a high level!!! I started jiu jitsu when I was 8, started a southern style of Kung Fu when I was fifteen, studied for a few months in China in an academy, and it’s been my dream to go back since.

3) Different cultural attitudes, the outside park culture, and how people talk to each other. I’m from the UK, alright - we don’t do things in public and we certainly don’t approach strangers!! So when I was in China this was one of the weirdest things to get used to, next to just the sheer amount of people (I grew up in a village of 2000). But though it was tiring at times, I liked it so much. It was so refreshing to have people ask me questions because they were curious, and start talking to me. One of the reasons that I think my accidental immersion-only approach to learning Chinese the first time I was in China worked was because I just couldn’t stay away from the parks. People practicing taiji, playing badminton, chilling with kids, doing calisthenics: isn’t that just so so cool??? And naturally if I was in the parks, people would chat to me. This patience and friendliness (because my Chinese truly was awful) combined with many people’s lack of ability / confidence in English meant that I was able to improve in a way which would have been impossible in, say, Germany or Finland. Can you imagine?? Once an old guy came up to me, peered over my shoulder at my (English) book, then announced loudly, ‘I can’t read it.’ I was like - can you read English?? He shook his head, and then pointed to a small boy: ‘This is my grandson. He’s learning English.’ That kind of interaction repeated daily, as well as being in a second-tier city where I had to speak Chinese, did so much for my language skills. It also made me very motivated to improve. Also, training and exercise is just a great way to meet people: no matter your language skills, if you are dedicated people are going to respect that, and if you’re both there every day, you’re going to get chatting eventually.

Phew, that got long again (what a surprise). But thank you very much for your questions!! :D

16 notes · View notes