#I understand lwj so much

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

There is a platonic explanation for all this. Right?

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

[gentil-minou]

Someone has to have written meta about how important the 1st incense burner chapter was for wangxian and how ir gave Lan wangji the catharsis he needed to stop being ashamed of his sexual desires after spending years punishing himself convinced his feelings were wrong and shameful because wy could never feel the same way about him. That the ugly feelings he had were his fault and how that made his guilt about his parents even worse

And then having Wei Ying the man he loves see them in all their raw and shameful glory, but instead of recoiling away in disgust wwx accepts them and lwj, showing him how lwj and his desires are not shameful, that wwx gets it he understands and he's into it too...and then the dream changes and becomes one of empowering lwj and giving him a chance to reclaim those teenage desires in a way that makes he feel good for once

how powerful that moment was for lwj who must have had a part of him that even in adulthood told him his teenage feelings were wrong, to finally come to the realization that he was just a kid and it's okay because those intrusive thoughts didn't make him a bad person. That even now they don't make him a bad person. That he can want and desire and be safe to explore those feelings and they aren't ugly or shameful they just exist as they are, that he can take them ans make them into something beautiful

Please tell me someone has written a better more cohesive version of this because my irl bff just finished the novel and hates lwj and I cannot handle that pleaseeeee

#SOMEONE HAS TO HAVE WRITTEN THIS PLEASE DONT TELL ME IT HAS TO BE ME IM NOT EMOTIONALLY CAPABLE OF THIS UGH... #my bff not understanding lwj's character....I have failed as a fan 😭😭😭😭😭 #mdzs #mo dao zu shi #lan wangji #god like i get that those chapters are not for everyone but ignoring the complexities of all of lwj's experience and narrowing it down to #make hime into a bag guy grinds me gears sk bad #i love lwj so much pleaseeeee not my boy #wangxian #mdzs meta #i swear to god if i get the same sort of bad faith comments and vague posting on this post as i did the last time i dared to express an #opinion im going to give up on this fandom i AM NOT IN THE HEADSPACE FOR THIS OKAY #mdzs musings

[tiredbitchposts]

Honestly, i love WLW! Wanxian fics but my petpeeve with them is that more often than not in they completely forget some character's essence, like, i'm sorry, but there's no way that Lan "I hate interacting with new people, i don't like physical touch, you're not qualified to talk to me so don't you even dare" Wangji would ever be the alpha lesbian y'all pretend he would be.

No way Lan "I wrote my crush a love song, named it our ship name, got jealous when he stood next to other people, adopted his child as my own, named them"I miss my ex", did the ancient chine equivalent of playing with an oujia board every night as an attempt to talk to his spirit, waited 10+ for and only ever stopped bc he came back from the dead" Zhan would be physically capable of being anything other than the useless lesbian pinning after her best friend that doesn't date anyone else bc she's loyal to the relationship they have in her head, like, could she fuck? Of course, does she want to? No

#wangxian #wlw wangxian #lan wangji #lan zhan #mo dao su zhi #mdzs #homeboy only got smooth in his 30s #like #could wlw Wangji be the alpha lesbian? #in theory yes #in practice she's probably in love with her best friend since she was 15 #and can't imagine being with anyone other than her #she's has uhaul on speed dial tho #i'm not bashing anyone's fanfiction #i understand why the use of certain tropes is appealing #and why y'all like the player characters so much #i just think it's annoying when y'all make Lwj the alpha lesbian who made her way through the entire town #and wwx the innocent comphet girl #imo it's just the wlw replay of the playboy and good girl tropes

[add1ctedt0you]

It's so fucking funny that the donghua writers were like "you know what would be romantic? If an incredibly wealthy young master bought a cheap toy for a homeless orphan. And did nothing else."

What are some other donghua writing gems?

Disclaimer: I watched the donghua three years ago, so I am not a specialist! But I re-watched recently some scenes. So, uh, everything is about jc and the jiang.

Lotus pier was destroyed for an hairpin

Do you think that novel!jfm is an useless sect leader? Don't worry, donghua!jfm is even worse! He was out of lotus pier to buy a jade hairpin for his wife apparently. Not getting into how buying material things to gain your wife's love isn't great, but why leaving lotus pier in such a moment?

Jiang Cheng (lack of) scenes

Do you all remember how novel!jc chased over wzl without even grabbing a sword? Good, because donghua!jc doesn't do shit! He stays right there, just saying: "Wei Wuxian!" perfectly chill.

Do you all remember how novel!jyl dies between novel!jc's arms? Good! Because donghua!jc is merely on the background. His sister was in mortal danger but he couldn't run faster than a tortoise!

Not a great change, but I am sure that novel!jc, whose face made wzl say: not today kid and run away and whose bitchy face made people piss on their pants, can defend himself!

Bonus:

My 4 years old niece can do better than this:

I couldn't put more imagines, but the quality is low a lot of time. And then you have:

Not understanding jc but spending all their budget on jc's last scene, it's wwx's peak behavior tbh.

Abandoned wife/ crazy ex jiang cheng

This is after the golden core's reveal (I am not getting into the chronological order); jc asks wwx why he didn't say anything about the core, why he abandoned them, and then lwj hits jc with his power (??) (I must say that donghua!jc takes a lot of punches: one time yzu slaps him, another time wwx punches him and then even lwj hits him. Man can't catch a break)

#In short: mdzs donghua is the adaptation of mdzs from lwj's point of view lol #Like. The jiang household vibes are more rancid in some way #But you also have one more scene with only wwx and jyl. Where she kinda forgives wwx for hitting jzx #Oh. And there's a scene where wwx is there with kid!jl. It was when wwx took jl's curse on himself. I didn't understand a lot but I found #the scene weird. I was like. 'wait. Doesn't have the kid a purple uncle??' #Hope it's interesting! I am sleep deprived so I don't make much sense lol #spriteofmushrooms #Again I am not a donghua specialist! #But I re watched some scenes to do gif. Because that's the only other tv version I know #Oh. And lwj has much more plot function. Kinda.

[layzeal]

if i think abt the tragedy of 3zun for too long i go insane, because by all means all 3 of them should have died in that coffin. it'd be TOO fitting. sworn brothers, promising their lives and deaths to each other, stuck together in their cycle for 100 years until there's nothing left of them, until they've merged into one

just for, at the last second, one of them says no, and pushes the final piece away. his life spared, one of us will live to pick up the shards, forever separated from the others

#sometimes i wonder if the only reason lxc wasn't killed in that coffin #is bc there was no way for mxtx to write a happy ending for wangxian if lwj's brother is dead #it was already tricky having him leave while he's grieving #but understandable since lans grive in seclusion #but GOD. I JUST THINK ABOUT IT #im glad it didn't happen. the breaking of expectations is a lot more satisfying #BUT IT COULD HAVE. AND IT EATS ME ALIVE #the ending we have is so much more heartwrenching #modao #lace speaks

[leatherbookmark]

unrelated, but when i say lxc should get to bite people/go apeshit/start killing, i don’t quite mean literally! it’s a mix of fandom frustration with everyone and their grandma and her cat accusing lxc of being too soft, too trusting, too easily manipulated into forgiving jgy everything, etc, etc, when he wasn’t like that at all but just wanted answers that he would have gotten If Not For Certain Events That I Won’t Mention Here, and Some Circles criticizing him for being “mean” to wwx (a cardinal sin) -- and... well. frustration with wgxn fucking off to fuck in the bushes for months and delighting in the lack of information about what’s happening in the jianghu. when lxc was Like That, and then, when wgxn were back, Still Struggling. and i obviously know he wouldn’t, not before being absolutely forced to, but god sometimes i do wish there was a fic in which he got a chance to just go... Hey Wangji But You Know That It* Wasn’t Cool, Right

*all of the above, plus wgxn withholding jgy-related information from him post-guanyin, plus wgxn urging him not to listen to jgy in the temple and acting as though jgy has manipulated lxc like a child with no mind of his own, plus wgxn barging into his life like “hey we think your friend killed your other friend. source: trust us. why aren’t you trusting us? cmon zwj be reasonable”, etc, etc

#he can even cry as he says this! in fact i think it's a plus #i'm a bastard for this but i'm really interested in the concept of like. wwx&jc paradoxically getting closer by the end of the story #and lxc&lwj just. drifting apart because of how much they Cannot understand each other anymore #lwj... clearly chose. and while i don't think it's the case of 'oooh he choose wwx and Freedom over stupid and stuffy sect rules!' #he nonetheless... doesn't have the same Insight into lxc's thoughts and feelings that lxc has (had?) into his #and yeah he seems concerned with lxc's wellbeing and i guess mxtx wanted to write about wgxn being happy post-canon rather than #the lan brothers' misery but even so. 'they couldn't try fucking upside down because lwj had to visit his secluded brother' #is how it looks like. idk #anyway #shrimp thoughts

[lesbian4lqg]

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

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

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

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

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Hi! Your Hollow Knight AU has really cheered me up so I wanted to do a little drawing for it! This got me to get my art tablet out after months of not feeling like it so thank you for the inspiration! I hope the colors look good on any monitor that's not mine sdfsdf

Bugs In the Jingshi wyd?

I am so genuinely awestruck at how well you translated this AU to the hollow knight style! Also obsessed with the height difference.

#mdzs au #hollow knight #lan wangji #wei wuxian #fanart #Thank you so much for this B'*) #This is *so* incredible!! I feel incredibly honoured to have inspired something so beautiful! #I showed this asap to my friend who's been letting me observe their hollow knight playthrough and oh man oh man. The hype was real. #The colours have the Hollow Knight gloomy swag and the way that this looks like it could be an area in the game is soooooo good. #Thinking about the bug sounds they would make.....Peace and love on earth could be achieved with lwj hollowspeak.... #I hope you keep finding fun things to draw!! Your art has continuously brought a lot of joy! #I very much understand the pain and struggle of having a craft you just...cant seem to get your heart back into. #Sending you so much love and energy and artistic inspiration!!!! #(lwj has the wrong eye shape b/c I was too focused on getting the silly angle for dramatic perspective. whoops) #I have honestly loved doing this AU and I'm fiercely happy that its been resonating with people (as it makes me want to do more hehe)

[muqingapologist]

i think it’s interesting how people often characterize lan wangji’s perspective of wei wuxian during and after the yiling laozi arc like “free my man, he did nothing wrong.” but to me, i feel like this is just selling short his character and his devotion to wwx. the way i see it, when wei wuxian is at his worst and in the years after when wwx comes back, lan wangji isn’t condoning his actions of that era. it’s more like, “i know you were trying to do the right thing, and things spiraled out of control, and i failed to help you back then, and i won’t fail you again.” it’s not wei wuxian’s actions that lan wangji is so defensive of but his intentions. even if lwj didn’t know at the time (and even when he comes back, at first) why wwx chose the ghostly path and gave up righteous cultivation, he has an unshakeable faith in wwx’s moral code, that wwx will do what he feels is right. or at least, doing what he thinks he needs to do to survive. this doesn’t necessarily mean that lan zhan thinks what wwx did as his mental state eroded WAS right. we see this so many times when lan zhan tries to help him, hoping that wwx will return to gusu with him. it’s not until it’s too late, when wwx is truly breaking down, that he understands that that wasn’t the right way to help wwx. the right way is to just be there for him, which is what he does when wwx returns. letting wwx make his own decisions while showing him that there is still someone who believes in him. imo this is much more meaningful than the other interpretation that i see a lot that i mentioned above. it’s about being there for wei wuxian even if he does make the wrong decisions because at the end of the day he knows that wwx, at his core, has good intentions.

#mdzs #mdzs meta #mo dao zu shi #grandmaster of demonic cultivation #wangxian #lan wangji #wei wuxian #lily posts

[redafi]

as someone who is kinda like lxc but more of a mess, who decided lxc having political power was a good idea

#You know that john mulaney meme thats like #I need to be liked so much. All the time. By everyone around me. #I will still think you secretly disapprove of at least half of my actions #But i need you to say you dont #And also that really lowers the threshold of “how many times will i actually distrust you after you lie to my face and i know it” #Which uh #yeah #LOOK JUST BECAUSE SOMEONE IS DIPLOMATIC DOES NOT MEAN THEYD BE GOOD AT POLITICS OKAY #thank you for coming to my ted talk on “lwj is literally the only human being lxc can accurately read” #(at least… at all times that is) #(Im accurate sometimes! Mostly at identifying when someones uncomfy.) #(But it counts) #(To be clear: personal headcanon based on my own experiences i understand if its not accurate to you)

[shanastoryteller]

Happy happy pride month 🌈🏳‍🌈🥳 Are you still doing the “cursed identity porn” au where LWJ can’t really see the Yiling Patriarch (because the mask?), but still tries to settle into being married to him? (Or JC traveling back in time?) Thanks!

a continuation of 1 2 3

Lan Wangji watches Wei Wuxian fold himself back into the silent, untouchable persona of the Yiling Patriarch and he mourns the loss of the warm, cheerful man he’s gotten to know. He still doesn’t understand the need for the secrecy, why he cannot be both the kind and generous father and sect leader and the man powerful enough to win a war and tame the Burial Mounds. But Wei Wuxian asks so little of him that he can’t bring himself to push for more than he’s willing to give.

Meng Yao does most of the talking while they travel, procuring their rooms and ordering their food. He does it with the same casual efficiency that he does everything and Lan Wangji thinks that this is a skill he must have picked up in the Nie, must have learned in service of Nie Mingjue.

They share one room even though they can afford more, but there’s a wariness that Wen Qing can’t hide and Meng Yao likely is that causes them to draw close. After Meng Yao comes back with dinner, Wei Wuxian takes off his mask and he’s surprised at how weary his husband looks, a weariness that he hasn’t seen once in the Burial Mounds, no matter how rowdy the children or demanding the villagers or intense the cultivation.

Lan Wangji lays his hand on Wei Wuxian’s arm, squeezing to get his attention. He meets his gaze slowly and offers him a smile that doesn’t reach his eyes. “Are you alright?”

“Fine,” he says. Lan Wangji raises an eyebrow and the warmth in voice seems real enough when he adds, “I am, I promise. We just have to get through this night hunt and we’ll be back home and everything will be fine.”

He doesn’t understand what everything is, why attending a night hunt as a war hero is causing so much discomfort, but he just tips his head down and says, “Yes, it will.”

Lan Wangji always sleeps lightly and that night everyone wakes him at least once. Wen Qing’s nightmare wakes her before he can, Wei Wuxian tosses and turns, and Meng Yao gets up far too early to pace the length of the room. He can easily withstand a night of poor sleep, so he says nothing.

They gather whispers and stares as the walk through Lanling and walk up the Jin’s obnoxious steps. Lan Wangji greets Sect Leader Jin and Madam Jin, curling his lip back when they neglect to greet Meng Yao but lets it lie when Meng Yao catches his eye.

They’ve barely stepped into the banquet hall when a beloved and familiar voice calls out, “Wangji!”

Xichen does not break the rule against running, but he does walk very quickly over to them, a bright smile lighting up his face. Lan Wangji wonders at how different he looks to when his brother saw him last. He still wears his silver cloud ornament around his forehead, but now it’s on a black ribbon. He has on soft grey robes embroidered with red and silver and a black underrobe made of the same fine silk as his ribbon. He does not think it is a color palette that is flattering on him, but at an official event such as this it's important that he wears his husband’s colors.

His brother grips his wrists in his hands. “Are you well?”

Lan Wangji smiles then says gently, “Sect Leader Lan.”

Bewilderment crosses Xichen’s face before being replaced in understanding. He squeezes his wrists then steps back, going into a shallow bow. “Greetings, Patriarch. Apologies for my break in decorum.”

Meng Yao waves a dismissive hand, “It’s fine, he’s not offended. You are his brother in law now.”

And his husband cares very little for decorum.

Wei Wuxian reaches forward and lightly presses up on Xichen’s arms to coax him out of his bow. The spell on the mask makes it impossible for Xichen to comprehend Wei Wuxian’s smile, but Lan Wangji hopes that his soft touch conveys something to his brother.

#prompt answers #prompts are closed #asks #anon #untamed

[sanduchengjiu]

The thing about jc and wwx is that i do not take any other characters interpretations on their relationship seriously, tbh only jyl would have a chance to understand those two and she’s dead by the end of the story so we don’t get her side (regretfully). But no other character in the story (not even chengxian themselves rlly) can understand their relationship without putting some of their own biases in it. Like lwj from his perspective sees jc as a selfish abusive brother but he’s not privy to all the experiences jc and wwx have had, he met them when they were 15ish and was in and out of wwxs life (without jc) until his death. Wn (no offense to him) is clearly only aware of what wwx did for jc, not the other way around. The thing that irks me about the story is that jc doesn’t have riders and shooters like wwx does for many reasons (he’s a bitch) and any person that can vouch for jc is literally gone (see: dead family) or a child (see: Jin ling) so we as the readers are the only ones who get to see their relationship fully since we are not being deceived by anyone and can see the way outside influences as well as internal ones culminate in the relationship between them.

What I’m trying to say is that it’s obv jc’s story ceases to be important in the eyes of the narrative bc mdzs is a romance novel at the end of the day, so for people who enjoyed the back and forth between chengxian (romantic or platonic) were left with an unfulfilling ending where jc also sacrificed something before wwx did so technically there’s nothing left to say. I do enjoy the fact that they ping pong sacrifice back and forth for each other but I can also see that ending their story there just plays into the narrative that their relationship is transactional, that is if you don’t read much into it, which is what most people who read mdzs do. Cuz most people only show up for wangxian which is perfectly fine and what youre supposed to do, I mean that’s what the story is about. But I can definitely see how the opinions that other characters have on chengxian and their whole mess (affectionately) of a story can lead to readers misunderstanding jc or wwx and woobifying one to make the other the innocent party. It’s also very frustrating and we’re allowed to complain about it lol.

#jiang cheng #mdzs #chengxian #wei wuxian #my thoughts #lan wangji I love you but you’ll never understand those two fuck ups #I wanna take their heads and smack them against each other #this post is a challenge as to how many parentheses I can possibly fit in one post #if you take shots for each one you will get alcohol poisoning

[leatherbookmark]

making it a separate post because i’d talk forever and it’s annoying to talk forever in the replies--

gnomeicecream replied to this post:

Makes me wonder if Lan Zhan isn't 'remember that time you thought my boyfriend was evil and nearly whipped me to death? I do' then deliberately not helping. He was left alone for what, three years after?

oh dear, now that's material for a loooooong conversation i'm not sure i'm qualified for, but like. i don't think lwj blames lxc for his punishment!

considering what the punishment is for, he kind of got off lightly; on top of that, lwj says in the banquet extra that "during the years i spent in seclusion, brother would always come visit me and talk to me sincerely", implying that now that the situation is reversed, he can't do the same. he has to feel at least a bit regretful/conflicted about that.

the thing that irks me is that... lxc is just a forever afterthought. this line i just quoted is from literally a three lines long post-coital conversation that happens and fizzes out quickly (wwx then doesn’t reply and they just go to sleep). another occasion lxc is mentioned in the extra is at the beginning of part 2, in which wgxn can’t try fucking while lwj’s doing handstands because “lwj has to visit his brother”. i know the book is about wgxn and the extras are even more so -- just a chance for the readers to bask in their adorable life together -- but from my pov (i don’t really care about wgxn’s adorable life together and i’m heartbroken about xiyao) it’s just... sad.

it’s been a while since i’ve read the chapters earlier than the one with the post-burial mounds lotus pier jgy haters conference, so i don’t remember all instances of the gusu twin jades interacting, but i can’t help but think that the whole jgy business kind of... changed it in a way that i’m not sure is salvageable. what i mean is that after lwj realized wwx is back, he sort of -- yeeted him on the very top of his priority list, and forgot everything and everyone else in the process, well, save for lsz because he’s wwx’s Kid Buddy From The Burial Mounds. he trusts and supports wwx completely, even if he has no real empirical reason for it -- wwx says jgy killed nmj, so jgy killed nmj, duh. the jades have their thing with silent communication, but i don’t remember lwj even showing that he’s in any way concerned with how lxc might feel about this.

in the guanyin temple as well -- i believe they do it out of concern for lxc, but i can’t help but feel bitter when wgxn tell lxc not to talk to jgy, not to believe him and so on, when they don’t want jgy to Tangle LXC In His Web Of Lies Again. i don’t know how to put it, but it’s like -- lxc isn’t a full person in this situation? they sort of assume he’s been tricked by jgy. they treat him almost like a child who doesn’t know better, when he says it himself that it’s not that he didn’t know jgy was up to No Good, he just trusted that he was doing it because he had no other choice. no thought is given to this revelation! jgy is bad, jgy is an excellent actor and a skilled manipulator, so it’s best to just not let him talk to lxc at all.

i think that at this point, lwj doesn’t understand lxc at all. i’m not sure whether he’s aware of this, so focused on wwx. probably not. but before he leaves, he doesn’t do anything to even show lxc... anything, really? i’ll be there for you, brother? i don’t understand, but i feel your pain? anything else, just anything! but there’s nothing. and by the time lxc is mentioned next time, it’s in the context of lwj not trying to help him because “it would be fruitless either way”. doesn’t that sound just fucking bleak.

because here, i feel, is the source of the problem, lxc’s crown of the most tragic elder sibling: his little brother doesn’t even know how to help him. there’s nothing he thinks he can do in this situation. does he even have anything to say about jgy, or his relationship with lxc? does he have anything to say about how his beloved helped bring him down? is he sorry about that, does he feel bad that lxc can’t or doesn’t want to face the world?

we just don’t know dot gif.

we do know, though, that at the end of the novel wangxian agree that they’ll tell lxc the truth -- the horrible truth that might make lxc, gasp! realize new things about his friend -- when he asks. which is honestly... well, i think you can guess how i feel about it.

it’s funny, though -- we talk a lot about the yunmeng bros’ reconciliation, is it possible or not, etc, etc, even though through jin ling all things are possible so jot it down. the fact that jl stubbornly points out that jc clearly wanted to say something to wwx -- this, i think, is a hint that they will eventually talk. or at least it would be in a world that i think would make sense; in a world where wwx has relationships other than lwj and the juniors. what should be debated more, i think, is the relationship between the lan brothers. the problem of lxc is often glossed over in fics; of course he leaves seclusion and attends wgxn’s wedding as their first and main shipper&supporter, and of course he finds peace, whatever the fuck it is. but does he really? i think lxc “finding peace” primarily should mean him figuring out what he wants as a person, individual, not “sect leader lan” or “lwj’s big brother”, but he, lan huan courtesy xichen. and i think that one of these things could be... understanding. and i don’t know if lwj can offer him that tbh

#conversating #gnomeicecream #idk if this thing still works but For organization purposes #4 / #5 / #mdzs #shrimp thoughts #i mean. on a logical level i obviously understand this book is primarily about wgxn and their relationship is the most important! really! #and that webnovel writers are underpaid and often write quickly. so maybe mxtx just wanted to get to the Real Meat and then didn't care/ #forgot to add something more about lxc when she was revising the novel #but it's kinda :/ #it's fascinating though how much like... If I Was To Draw A Chart between lwj/lxc/wwx/jgy. there would be many arrows i think #lwj gains and lxc loses his loved person; wwx and his brother have a dramatic heart-baring conversation and even though they part #ways it's obvious that it's not the end of their relationship at all; meanwhile lwj and his brother... do not talk at all and we don't know #what's going to happen to their relationship. am sad. :(

[tavina-writes]

CQL and Genre Intertextuality

I'm being bashed over the head with the "nhs's fan in CQL is made of xuantie/dark iron" thing again and @poorlittleyaoyao please understand that I am thinking of this constantly since you made that post talking about it because I'm just.

holding my head in my hands bc ye gods the cql show writers were genre savvy in ways that are hilarious but also make me feel like I've been hit upside the head with a waffle iron.

For those of us who are no longer damaged by the post or hadn't seen it (I don't actually know where it's gone bc the search feature doesn't work on this webbed site):

Xuantie/Dark Iron is a Jin Yong created metal that famously was used for the blade of the Dragon Slaying Sabre in the third novel of the Condor Trilogy, 倚天屠龍記/The Heavenly Sword and Dragon Saber.

The Heaven Reliant Sword 倚天劍 was created from Yang Guo and Xiao Longnv's Gentleman and Lady swords, whilst the Dragon Slaying Saber 屠龍刀 was created from Grandmaster Dugu Seeking-a-Loss's Dark Iron Sword.

Can we please all take a moment to appreciate how NHS's fan not his saber, NHS, from The Family With The Sabers, gets to shout about how his fan is made of xuantie. The most famous for being the metal that made up The Dragon Slaying Saber. His fan. Not his saber. his fan. dark iron. Dragon Slaying Saber. This is so funny I'm about to mcfucking lose it yet again while typing this.

Going back to Grandmaster Dugu Seeking-A-Loss (who appears in both Return of the Condor Heroes and Xiao Ao Jianghu) and his giant pet condor (sadly, only a ROCH feature) who might've been his one true soulmate for a second, this situation from episode 7, when the Yunmeng Siblings are leaving the Cloud Recesses:

Now, the subtitles here really DO NOT do this line justice because when I first saw it it took me FLAT THE FUCK OUT and I had to lie on the floor laughing for like, 80 seconds before I got my breath back.

Okay, what this line ACTUALLY says is "I am Dugu Qiubai (Grandmaster Dugu Seeking-A-Loss), what's wrong with seeking a match?"

Now, to understand this, we come to this backstory on Dugu Qiubai in XAJH:

“Senior master Dugu Seeking-A-Loss, who created this set of sword techniques, had a name ‘Seeking-A-Loss.’ He had been seeking a loss all his life and still couldn’t get one. Once the sword techniques were executed, he would become unmatched anywhere in the world. Why would he have to defend? If anyone could have forced him to draw his sword back and defend himself, the respectful master would have burst with joy and be delighted beyond measure.” Feng Qingyang said. “Dugu Seeking-A-Loss, Dugu Seeking-A-Loss,” Linghu Chong muttered as he imagined how the senior master had wandered about the Martial World, unmatched anywhere, with only his sword, and couldn’t even find a single one who was capable of forcing him into a defending stance. That was truly admirable.

from Chapter Ten of XAJH: Sword Training.

"If anyone could force him to draw his sword back to defend himself, the grandmaster would have burst with joy and be delighted beyond measure" DO YOU SEE WHY JC STARTED CALLING WWX SHAMELESS NOW. they're JUNIORS. WWX is calling himself "the greatest man of all, who'd sought the feeling of losing just ONCE being forced to defend himself just ONCE in a LIFETIME" and saying "LWJ might be my equal. my soulmate. the loss I was seeking my whole life."

All 15 years of it I'm sure, WWX.

I'm not going to get into finding martial arts manuals or a respected grandmaster who taught you incredible things in a cave bc 1) LHC and Feng Qingyang up there are sitting together, in a cave and LHC is being taught incredible things and 2) Duan Yu from Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils once found the magic finger lasers of ultra laser in a cave. In front of the statue of a goddess. (don't talk about the dancing goddess statue now, Tav. We don't have time for that in this post.)

Not kidding the intertextuality of CQL and how much it plays with and against the tropes of its genre, especially other wuxia tv adaptations as well as wuxia novels is insane. There's other ones I'm missing for certain and these were just the most funny to me, personally, but! just! oh my god! insane! insane! SO funny, so clever in so many ways

#meta #my meta #wei wuxian #nie huaisang #nie huaisang my beloved #I don't even know how to begin to explain how much this show and its show writers really KNOW its genre #there are certain shots where I'm like #'oh god that's an exact mirroring of the composition of this other shot in a show made like 20 years earlier!!!' #no cql doesn't know what a pacing is and there's four episodes of guanyin temple #but my god do these people who made this show really love wuxia and it really really shows #and that's lovely I'm so happy about it

[symphonyofsilence]

Honestly, it looks like at least after the Guanyin Temple, WWX is actively resisting understanding that JC still cares about him. JC takes a Stab to the chest for him, asks him why he didn't keep his promise & stay by his side, has a full breakdown over his sacrifice, gives him back Chenqing that he's kept for all these years, gets angry at JGY on his behalf, JGY spells out for WWX that JC is angry because he feels WWX was wronged, and that JC must have come to rescue not only JL, but WWX too, & targets WWX in the middle of the fight, fully trusting that JC would rush to his rescue, and he does. JC even thanks LWJ and holds a fallen WN. & I think one reason that WWX might be subconsciously fighting against getting all these clear signs and still avoiding JC might be that as much as he thinks he can’t handle JC’s wrath and blame and wants him to forgive him, he actually can’t afford JC’s forgiveness and unconditional love. Because he still blames himself for JZX’s and JYL’s deaths and even the massacre of Lotus Pier. & JC is the only one who has the right to be angry at him for all of these. He and JL. JC’s the only one who knew JYL & genuinely cared about her. WWX doesn’t think he deserves JC’s forgiveness. In fact, he looks terrified of it. Just look how quickly he turns from JC after thanking him for giving Chenqing back to him (Chenqing that after all these years still sounded like he had first used it. A very telling sign of JC's affection in itself.) Even though even JL who was watching from afar could say that JC had something to say to WWX:

JC is an outward force blaming him and being angry at him. WWX can tell him that he doesn’t know what to say to him when asked for an explanation, he can tell him that it’s all in the past. Let it go. he can beat the shit out of him. He can apologize to him and be judged by him. He can avoid him. Pretending that by ignoring him he doesn’t have to face the past. JC blames WWX and is harsh to him so WWX doesn’t have to fight himself and blame himself all the time. post-resurrection WWX keeps misinterpreting everything JC says and is unwilling to listen to him and get the hints JC keeps giving him about how he just wants WWX to come back home & interprets everything JC even doesn’t say in the worst ways he can bc it’s not so much about JC than it’s about WWX projecting onto JC. Because he thinks JC MUST be thinking that way. BC WWX thinks he deserves JC’s hatred. And judging by how he keeps misinterpreting JC even pre-time-skip, and in true WWX fashion fully believes himself to be right & doesn't second guess himself and or makes any effort to understand JC, & JYL is always the JC translator for him, from the moment she says to him that despite his tantrum JC is happy to finally have a playmate, to the moment she says that JC was the one who offered WWX name JL, and without JYL there to take their hands and pull them to meet each other in the middle the brothers can't communicate, Jiang Cheng has never been so much his own person in Wei Wuxian's mind as WWX's interpretation of him. WWX's shidi. An open book to WWX in WWX's mind. When he was not WWX's fragile shidi who needed protection (which @cerusee has written a great meta about here.), then he was WWX's betrayed, angry shidi who blamed him & resented him. If JC forgives him and continues to be his loving brother then it’s clear that the only one who can’t forgive WWX is WWX. and what is he gonna do about that?

#mdzs #idk i might be wrong but it's really baffling how WWX just DOESN'T GET IT #HOW CAN HE NOT UNDERSTAND #but then again WWX didn't get LWJ's feelings either & there was no baggage between them so... #maybe he's just an idiot #the grandmaster of demonic cultivation #tgod #mo dao zu shi #chen qing ling #mxtx #the untamed #jiang cheng #jiang wanyin #wei wuxian #yunmeng shuangjie #twin heroes of yunmeng #twin prides of yunmeng #yunmeng bros #my two cents #jiang yanli #yunmeng siblings #mdzs meta

[ninjakk]

wait can you please speak more on WWX qi deviating after the LP confrontation with JC? I've always wondered what that sudden sickness was.

Hi anon 👋🏻

Of course! I think this detail is often missed because of the rest of the drama and overall poignancy of the scene. It's also never outright stated as a "qi deviation", but MXTX expects us to use the information she gave us in prior chapters to arrive at such a conclusion ourselves - as she so often does.

Not long before the scene in question, WWX and LWJ were a major part of the driving force that saved everyone from an onslaught of fierce corpses intent on attacking them all at the burial mounds. He was exhausted from that and even though he claims to have been exaggerating to "trick" LWJ into looking after him while on the boat to LP, he was still feeling the effects of the past few days catching up with him. After all, he was stabbed a few days prior to them travelling to Yiling as well.

All of the above, alongside the heightened emotions of the past few days; realising his feelings for LWJ, how deeply he feels them, if LWJ feels the same way, coming back to LP after such a long and traumatic time, living through a second siege of the burial mounds and facing his trauma head on at the very place he died - all quite an emotional rollercoaster for our beloved WWX.

Then the altercation with JC, where he is being verbally abusive, just pushes all those overwhelming emotions over the edge and causes WWX to have a minor qi deviation. That being said, it could have been fatal, as qi deviations often can be. Which is why some fans find JCs unwillingness to stop attacking WX (both verbally and physically) and refusing to let them leave when WWX was showing signs of his health deteriorating, all rather underhand. It's also why LWJ lost his cool a little and WN served him a verbal bitch-slap to shut him up and finally make JC understand just how much WWX has done to pay back his "debt" to the Jiang sect.

WWX was under great emotional stress at the time, feeling attacked for not only being in love with LWJ, but being once again wrongfully blamed for everything that happened at LP - which even JC admits is simply not true.

Qi deviations can occur for many reasons. I won't go into it too much right now, but one such reason (in the MDZS universe) is being greatly affected by emotions or becoming emotionally unstable. WWX is so overcome with all those strong emotions he begins to bleed from "the seven apertures" and even starts to faint, finally losing consciousness - which are signs of a qi deviation. We see examples of this earlier on in the novel with LQR and the cultivator who escaped the Mingshi for help once they all began bleeding from the apertures and essentially qi deviating. And again when LQR wakes up to shout at WWX and qi deviates once more - which is hilarious 🤣Obviously NMJ, and his father before him, both suffered similar symptoms before qi deviating and eventually succumbing to gruesome deaths as a result as well.

So there you have it anon ☺️ that's my understanding of qi deviations (in the MDZS universe, as the term/cause/effect can differ from one fiction to another) and my reading of the novel. I hope it helps to answer your question to some extent!

#mdzs #mo dao zu shi #wei wuxian #mdzs novel #wei wuxian's qi deviation #anon ask #answered ask