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wangsejabin · 1 year

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Chapter 103

The Crown Princess, who was pondering whether it was appropriate for Xu Liangyuan to raise the fifth son, froze for a moment.

"There are two sons over at the East First Court, you only have the Grand Duke and the Second County Princess, the Zhong family is just a civil official's family with no heritage and has only been around for a short time, the Fifth Prince is also so little, it is just right for you to raise him, even as a helper for the Grand Duke in the future?"

After saying this, Fu Chun also realised that she had overstepped her bounds and said, "This is my servant's opinion, my servant is overstepping the mark."

Fu Xia, who was rubbing the Crown Princess' leg, blinked and hung her head again, as if she had not heard.

But the Crown Princess was deep in thought.

Yes, she had thought of everyone, but she had forgotten herself. The children are still young, so she and Su have nothing to fight about. But what if they are all grown up, and what if His Highness ascends to the throne?

If His Majesty were to ascend to the throne, she would be the Empress of the Middle Palace and Duo'er would be the legitimate son of the Middle Palace, but Su would be the favourite concubine and have two sons. At Empress Fu's birthday banquet, even the young Zong Lin knew how to compete for favour.

That was the warning sign.

So what if he is the legitimate son of the middle palace? Two fists cannot beat four hands, not to mention the fact that he has a biased father.

The Prince Consort did not say anything, but she was obviously moved.

There are some things that a servant can say, but too many words can easily lead to disgust, and after all, the master is not stupid.

"I'll think about it. All right, you have also been tired all day, all of you go down and rest."

"Yes."

Fu Chun's guess was correct, and early the next morning, before the Crown Princess had risen, Li Liangyuan came.

Not only did she come, but Zhao Xiyue came too.

She said that Zhao Xi Yue had taken advantage of the chaos to carry off the fifth son, and that it would be better if nothing happened to him, but if something happened to him, how could she face sister Zhong?

She also said that she was a Liangyuan and Zhao Xiyue was a Fengyi, and that no one could take her turn.

It's true that Zhao Xiyue's position is low, but isn't she flying the banner of the Crown Princess' maternal family? The two families will be united and will still be afraid of Su.

This is what Zhao Xiyue told the Crown Princess yesterday, so apart from the position, there is also the factor of family power.

The Crown Princess was still lying in bed and got up in a fit of pique.

She told Fu Chun to call the two people in, so that they wouldn't be embarrassed outside. It was fine to be embarrassed in front of her own people in the Eastern Palace, but this was the Western Court.

But the news still reached the Prince's ears, so much so that he got up early in the morning with a bad look on his face.

"Who do you think is the right person to raise the baby?"

Pan'er's subconscious reaction was that the Prince was testing her with his words, but she raised her eyes to see him with a gloomy face and a slight frown between his brows, obviously in a very bad mood. She also said that she had never changed, what was he doing testing her with these words, something was different from her previous life.

" His Highness wants who to raise the Fifth Prince?"

"Xu Liangyuan is also a senior member of the East Palace, and only has the Grand County Princess by her side, but Zhao Fengyi is the Crown Princess's maternal family, and the Crown Princess ......" The Crown Prince paused, seemingly aware that it was not good to talk about how the Crown Princess was in front of Pan'er, and digressed. " Li Liangyuan comes from the House of the Princess Changshun, she's not a thoughtful one, but she's just fidgety."

Pan'er thought about it carefully, but this was indeed the most suitable trio for the moment.

The Crown Princess has only one son, so giving her child to Zhao Xiyue is like giving the Grand Duke a boost; Li Liangyuan is simple-minded, but she has the backing of the Princess's House, which was once raised by the Empress Dowager, and the Princess's House doesn't get involved in any disputes, so she is above the fray.

As for Xu Liangyuan, when Pan'er first entered the East Palace, everyone said that Xu Liangyuan had a big mouth, but in fact, from Pan'er's point of view, Xu Liangyuan was actually very smart.

The fact is that Xu Liangyuan has always stayed out of trouble, not close to the Crown Princess, not offending her or being close to her, and seems to have one eye on raising the Grand Prefect and letting her raise the Fifth Prince, whether from seniority or status.

After all, while weighing all this, the Crown Prince had to consider whether the foster mother could protect the Fifth Prince.

The prince's words made Pan'er somewhat uncomfortable to answer; to say it to Zhao Xiyue would make her seem too deliberate, to say it to Li Liangyuan would be suspicious of targeting the crown princess, so she had to choose the relatively more secure Xu Liangyuan.

"Xu Liangyuan is a careful and steady person, and you can tell from the Grand Prefect that Xu Liangyuan is good at raising children."

The prince nodded: "I have considered her again and again, and I think she is suitable."

The matter was settled, and after breakfast the prince left, and Pan'er guessed that he might have gone out to Pure One Zhai to settle the matter with the crown princess.

Sure enough, before noon, the news was released.

The Prince ordered a generous burial, and decreed that the fifth prince was young and pitiful,to be placed in the care of Xu Liangyuan.

--.

The Prince Consort looked at Fu Chun and said with a bitter smile, "There is no need to think about it now."

The Prince did not come to discuss with the Prince Consort, but came to say that the matter had been settled, and the Prince Consort was asked to support it.

Although it is said that the Crown Prince sent the words, but Li Liang Yuan and Zhao Feng Yi pestered the Crown Princess for so long, but in the end did not get what they wanted, can not blame the Crown Princess?

But who told her to be the Crown Princess.

"I was still hesitant, but it's just as well that I don't hesitate anymore, so have someone order that all of the Fifth Prince's things be sent to Xu Liangyuan's place. Since we have to do it, let's do it in full, and lest something goes wrong then, it will be taken as my heart's unwillingness."

"Yes, Crown Princess, don't worry slave servant will make the proper arrangements."

In Planting Xiu Xuan, the First County Princess looked at Xu Liangyuan with surprise: "Mother, will daughter really have a younger brother?"

Xu Liangyuan pursed her lips and stroked her daughter's forehead, "Yes, from now on Wanxian will have a younger brother."

Jinping and Jingyu beside Xu Liangyuan were also full of joy: "Yes, Grand Mistress, from now on we will finally have a little son in the Second Western Courtyard, and there will be someone to back up Grand Mistress."

"If you want me to say so, it is because the Prince has our master in mind, and knows that our master has raised the Grand County Princess well, so he has sent the Fifth Prince here, as the master's wish."

Xu Liangyuan said with a smile, "All right, you two smart mouths, why don't you have someone go and clean up, when the fifth son is sent here, there must be a place to live, and also the nursemaids and palace maids, the previous ones will be used first, and then replaced when they are not suitable after a while, Jingyu you don't care about anything these days, first help me to watch the fifth son, as long as the fifth son is well, I will definitely reward you. "

"Yes, master."

The whole of Planting Xiu Xuan was immersed in a joyful atmosphere, and after a whole morning of work, when the fifth son finally settled down and fell asleep, Xu Liangyuan watched over and over the bedside, her face full of smiles and satisfaction.

"Watch over the Fifth Prince well, and when you serve him well, I will not treat you poorly."

"Yes, master."

Only then did Xu Liangyuan lead Jinping away.

When she returned to her room, Xu Liangyuan leaned back on the noble concubine's couch, with a smile on her face all the time, although her brows were tired.

Jinping rubbed her forehead.

"Are the arrangements for the Eastern Palace ready?"

"Don't worry, my lord, arrangements have been made long ago. Cui Liu is from the House of Internal Affairs, and now that Zhong Liangyuan has died and she has reached the right age, it's time for her to leave the palace."

Xu Liangyuan nodded in satisfaction, "That's fine. But even without me, those people would not have let her go, who told her to be incapable and to carry a piece of flesh in her arms like a toddler carrying red gold in the market, even without Cui Liu stirring up the fire, she would not have survived for long, so don't blame me, Zhong Liangyuan, I will raise the fifth son for you properly."

Her voice was almost a whisper by the end of the day, and Xu Liangyuan was drifting off to dreamland.

She too was a little tired, and when she woke up, life would be very different from then on, but who knew?

Yingtai, Hanyuan Hall.

Wang Jinnian was outside with a group of eunuchs, and the sound of women's pouting and laughter was faintly heard in the hall, but no one dared to look inside.

"Grandpa Wang, when do you think His Highness will return to the palace?

Wang Jinnian lost his smile and slapped the young eunuch on the head: "Why are you thinking about this, what the master says, how we listen is ......"

The first thing that happened was that the Emperor Cheng An called Wang Jinnian from inside.

Wang Jinnian was busy lowering his head and went inside, and did not look up indiscriminately when he entered, but came to the dragon couch precisely.

"Bring me the immortal medicine."

"Your Majesty ......" Wang Jinnian was a little hesitant, because Emperor Cheng'an had just taken the immortal medicine before, before he called for someone to come and serve him in bed, and this was taken again in a row, did it mean-

"I told you to go and get it, go and get it, where is all the nonsense!"

Wang Jinnian answered, bowed his head and went out, and brought a box over shortly.

Emperor Cheng'an took the pills, opened the wax seal and threw them away, then took the tea from Wang Jinnian and took the pills, before pouncing on the two beauties on the dragon couch.

Unspeakable sounds were once again heard from the tent, and Wang Jinnian silently retreated.

When he served the medicine, he looked up and saw that Emperor Cheng'an's eyes were as red as a turtledove's, and he looked exuberant, but his face was rosy with a hint of grey.

Wang Jinnian felt that this was not good, but did not even dare to mention it, for it was not as if he had never mentioned it before, but Emperor Cheng'an had not taken it seriously, and had even reprimanded him for meddling too much.

After all, everyone wants to live, and he also wants to leave himself a way out.

Wang Jinnian was just looking up to wipe the sweat off his forehead when a scream suddenly came from inside.

#mtl #yingchong

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foxghost · 2 years

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Joyful Reunion

Translator: foxghost @foxghost tumblr/ko-fi1 Beta: meet-me-in-oblivion @meet-me-in-oblivion tumblr Original by 非天夜翔 Fei Tian Ye Xiang Masterpost | Characters, Maps & Other Reference Index

Book 4, Chapter 41 (Part 2)

“But he never told me about any of this,” Duan Ling says, “that if I wear the prayer beads then the assassins of Yulin won’t come kill me …”

“I already scolded him,” Li Yanqiu says. “It’s a good thing you haven’t been wearing them. Did he really think it’s like the Zhenshanhe? If they knew the prayer beads have fallen into Han hands, they would surely step over each other to kill you and take it back. It’d actually end up putting you in danger. Seriously, Wuluohou Mu is awfully naive.”

Is that so? Duan Ling thinks to himself. Perhaps Lang Junxia has another reason for his persistence. Did he want to see me wear the keepsake he gave me?

“Never mind, enough about that.” Li Yanqiu continues, “That night, the people who attacked Jianhong in that valley and the city of Shangjing were disciples of the Yulin Sword School. Since Mu Kuangda had the wherewithal to issue these people orders, I’m sure he has always maintained close ties with this branch of the school.”

“Right.” Duan Ling can’t help it. He’s furious.

“But that doesn’t rule out that they may have only started working together recently. As for how it happened, we don’t have definite intel. We will need you to try to find this out.”

“Me? Ye may share a border with Liao, but …”

It suddenly occurs to Duan Ling that Yelü Zongzhen is the emperor of Liao! With Han Weiyong under his nose, wouldn’t it be easier just to ask him?

“I got it,” Duan Ling says. “I’ll write a letter to Zongzhen as soon as I get back.”

Li Yanqiu nods before adding, “Helan Jie already died in your hands. In a sense, you’ve taken revenge for this deed.”

“But at the time, Helan Jie was fighting for Xiliang.” Duan Ling recalls the conspiracy in Tongguan and asks, “Why was he involved with Xiliang?”

“That was also one of the major issues I discussed with Marquess Yao earlier this afternoon. You have a younger female cousin — you were the one who sent her off to be married from Tongguan. The Yaos formed a marriage alliance with Xiliang, and after sending their merchant caravan, this is what they found out: after the battle of Shangjing, Liao suspected Han Weiyong sent assassins to kill Yelü Dashi over a power struggle at court, and by doing so betrayed all of Shangjing. In order to cover this up, Han Weiyong told Helan Jie to leave Zhongjing and escape into Xiliang territory, and to seek asylum there temporarily.”

Duan Ling is shocked. “Yelü Dashi was assassinated too?!”

Duan Ling recalls the eve of Shangjing’s fall. That night, Yelü Dashi had left the city to take part in a key battle, where he was shot, and died of his injuries upon his return. Now that he thinks about it, it did look a lot like Yelü Dashi was hit with a poisoned arrow.

“In all likelihood.” Li Yanqiu heaves a sigh. The two of them sit there quietly, neither in the mood to eat. Li Yanqiu continues, “Wuluohou Mu told me that when he went back to Xichuan, he was once poisoned — Chang Liujun had put poison on his sword. Wu Du used a combination of bloodletting and an antidote that breaks down poison to get rid of it for him. And now, beneath Mount Dingjun, the poison those assassins used on Zheng Yan was the very same one.”

“Was it the same poison they used on my dad?”

“Nearly the same. They were both refined from a type of rattlesnake in Xiyu. It’s just that the poison they used on Jianhong three years ago was refined longer, and it was also mixed with scorpion and centipede venom. With the bloodletting method, Wu Du couldn’t have cured your dad of his poison. That’s why he’s often felt so guilty through all these years.”

Duan Ling turns to look outside. Wu Du’s figure casts a shadow on the paper screen of the doorframe.

Regarding the manufacturing of poison, Duan Ling has been with Wu Du long enough that he has some knowledge of it. Both poisoning and ridding someone of poison are extremely complicated processes; when many kinds of toxins are mixed together, the difficulty in nullifying it can hardly be compared to a simpler poison. But some poisons are rather difficult to create as well.

“That’s his explanation. Do you believe that?” Li Yanqiu turns around and asks him.

“I do.” Duan Ling nods, and says, "The foundational toxin of the Yulin Sword School is the venom of the rattlesnake. It can be smeared on swords, arrows, and any concealed weapon. But in order to kill an expert of the martial arts, they may mix in other venoms of spiders or scorpions. Usually, the one doing the poisoning would make certain improvements. The method Wu Du usually uses to rid a person of this poison is to perform bloodletting before giving the patient an antidote possessing the intense ‘dry’ property to help the patient force the poison out of their body. There’s no real way to give an ‘antidote’ to oppose the poison.

“Truth is, I don’t blame him.” Duan Ling pauses to think before adding, “It’s all in the past. It’s not something that can be helped.”

Li Yanqiu answers him with an affirming hum. “No matter what, now is still not the time for you to return to Jiangzhou.”

“But I’m worried about you, uncle. Why don’t we let Wu Du go with you.”

Duan Ling can tolerate parting with Wu Du for a few months if it means nothing happens to Li Yanqiu.

Li Yanqiu shakes his head slowly. “After I get back, Jiangzhou will be my battlefield. You don’t have to worry.”

How can he not worry? Upon his return, Li Yanqiu will have to face Mu Kuangda and Cai Yan head-on.

“Mu Kuangda brought many people from Xichuan. The empress is his younger sister, and there is serious infighting among the imperial court’s factions. He’s planted quite a few people in key positions. By the end of three months at the soonest, and six months at the latest, I must replace all of these people lest anything unforeseen should come to pass after we kill him.”

“He’s definitely going to pull something,” Duan Ling says. “Chang Liujun has already been discovered by us, and Mu Kuangda also knows that Chang Liujun’s been discovered by us.”

The moment Chang Liujun showed himself also signified that Mu Kuangda’s traitorous actions have been exposed.

“According to Yao Fu’s intelligence, Chang Liujun hasn’t gone back to Jiangzhou yet. Yao Fu has already put checkpoints in place. He won’t let Chang Liujun return to Jiangzhou. So Mu Kuangda doesn’t have anyone at his side anymore. I’m going to set a trap out for him. When this trap is sprung, you’ll be able to come home.”

What sort of trap? Duan Ling suddenly senses something, but since Li Yanqiu isn’t telling him, then Duan Ling isn’t going to press him about it either. He has a hazy feeling that Li Yanqiu is about to get rid of Cai Yan and Mu Kuangda in one fell swoop.

“The food’s gotten cold,” Li Yanqiu says. “Wu Du, ask Zheng Yan to warm it up.”

“Certainly.” Wu Du comes in and takes the cold dishes out of the room. Li Yanqiu isn’t an extravagant person. Most of the time, he’d simply eat the food even when it’s gone cold.

“Uncle.” Even though Duan Ling doesn’t want to say it, he can’t help himself. “Promise me not to take any chances.”

Li Yanqiu gives him a small smile. “Don’t worry.”

Before they know it, Zheng Yan is carrying in the reheated food, and Li Yanqiu starts asking Duan Ling about Ye as though he hasn’t said anything else at all.

“Along the way, I heard some discussion among the commoners. They all said that you’ve been doing a great job governing Hebei.”

“It’s all Master Fei’s hard work,” Duan Ling replies.

Li Yanqiu says approvingly, “Knowing how to use people is a skill as well.”

Duan Ling smiles a bit shyly and talks to Li Yanqiu some more, but inside his head, he keeps mulling over what kind of trap Li Yanqiu is planning to set that could pull both Mu Kuangda and Cai Yan up by the roots.

Maybe the Chancellor is colluding with the crown prince to stage a coup? Or maybe Li Yanqiu is going to push the blame for creating a fake crown prince onto Mu Kuangda? The more Duan Ling thinks about it, the more likely it seems. He looks over at Li Yanqiu.

“If you’re leaving tomorrow, you don’t have to come say your farewells.” Li Yanqiu says, “Lest I change my mind at the last minute and drag you back to Jiangzhou with me.”

Duan Ling smiles, and soon his eyes are going red again. He puts his chopsticks down and walks to Li Yanqiu so he can sit down at his side, to lean against him.

“Wu Du, stay here for a little while. And Ruo’er, if you don’t have anything else you must tell me, go get some rest.”

Duan Ling knows that Li Yanqiu has instructions for Wu Du, so he goes back to his rooms on his own.

That night, a gale-force wind rises, and Duan Ling is waiting up for most of the night before Wu Du comes back. Duan Ling doesn’t say anything until Wu Du sits down on the daybed to change his boots. “Uncle asked you about all those things?”

“He questioned me repeatedly, many times, years ago.”

“What did you talk about today?”

Wu Du looks up and glances at Duan Ling, but he just smiles without answering.

“What did you talk about?” Duan Ling presses.

“He told me to take good care of you. It’s just stuff about daily living.”

Duan Ling only nods then.

Li Yanqiu probably got a statement from Lang Junxia. Then the first priority for Duan Ling, when he gets back to Ye, is to get in touch with Yelü Zongzhen and try his best to obtain evidence of Mu Kuangda and Han Weiyong’s collusion.

When Duan Ling gets up the next day, the first thing he does is go say goodbye to Yao Fu and Li Xiao. Yao Zheng is the same as always, standoffish. Duan Ling wonders if she got the cold shoulder yesterday from Lang Junxia.

“Uncle said …”

“He got up earlier than you today,” Li Xiao replies. “He already left for Jiangzhou this morning.”

“Oh?” Duan Ling didn’t think that Li Yanqiu would have already left.

Yao Fu asks Duan Ling to stay for breakfast, then he walks him out of the city personally. Just as he’s about to leave, Li Xiao sends along four carriages worth of food and clothing, and she also assigns a division of a thousand men from the Huaiyin troops to escort him. Adding that to Duan Ling’s own troops, they have almost two thousand men with them.

Li Xiao sees Duan Ling off beyond the city gates, and holding his hand, she whispers, “Ruo’er, unless my husband sends Zheng Yan with a message telling you to go back to Jiangzhou, do not leave recklessly.”

Duan Ling has never had a mother. Even though he’s hardly spoken with Li Xiao, there’s a familiarity between them that comes naturally. He can’t help himself from stepping forward to give her a hug.

“Where’s Wuluohou Mu?” Duan Ling asks Yao Zheng.

“Left with uncle first thing in the morning,” Yao Zheng replies.

Duan Ling can but get in the carriage, and after reluctantly saying his farewells to the family of the Marquess of Huaiyin, head back to Ye on the northern road.

This translation is by foxghost, on tumblr and kofi. I do not monetise my hobby translations, but if you’d like to support my work generally or support my light novel habit, you can either buy me a coffee or commission me. This is also to note that if you see this message anywhere else than on tumblr, it was reposted without permission. Do come to my tumblr. It’s ad-free. ↩︎

#相見歡 #fei tian ye xiang #joyful reunion #xiang jian huan #fox translates things

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soulfullofold · 2 years

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bro yes. yes. yes. i am menacing #31 and #41 and #48 lol and #22 for the spice. Also since you went certifiably deranged in my inbox this is my free ticket to you to answer any of them that look interesting to you >:)

(DOES A LITTLE JIG)

31. Pick one OC & explain what their tumblr would be like

Xiyu's tumblr would be so funny. Tan, charcoal grey, light green, light blue, and white as the color scheme. It starts off minimalist & "~aesthetic~" with just a left sidebar and a one-column scroll. Simple bio. Totally dedicated to posting her poetry. And then as it gets popular, it pivots into a writing help askblog of sorts. She's put her truncated FAQ as the right sidebar (with a link to a miles-long, hyper specific FAQ) and like the status of her inbox and what requests she's open for. Occasionally she reblogs her friends' calligraphy. and you Know she's got a dedicated tagging system. I would say she goes off in the tags but she doesn't hide ANYTHING in the tags. Commentary Straight on the post.

41. Has anyone drawn fanart of your OCs?

BUT REALLY I'm very veryveryveryvery thankful for it and so touched ;m; It's so hard to pick!! I keep any art I get of my OCs in my dA favorites. Here's only the tiniest sampling of some of my faves: a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z ♥ And a THOUSAND MILLION other things I want to show but I'm trying to keep the parameters to only stuff posted on dA so it links directly back to the creators too if you wanna follow them :) <3

48. OC who is a perfect cinnamon roll, too good for this world, too pure

jesus christ kK;FLASDFJA;SDF the way 2015 smacked me in the ass ok. uh uh i wish i could come up with something better and snarkier and more witty but literally all of my ocs are scrappy like there isn't a single one who hasn't committed a crime, done something bad, or -- ... wait.

Ora's butterflies have done nothing wrong in their lives they are my bewinged cinnamon rolls. i guess.asdlkfj;a

anddd questions phoned in from vlpn: 31. Pick one OC & explain what their tumblr would be like

Elle's blog would be all blurry, low to the ground, kind of strange photos scanned from instant camera prints. They're both kind of unsettling in their contextless nature but also sort of whimsical and charming. 5. If you could make only one of your OCs popular/known, who would it be?

This is SUCH a hard question. Because like. On the one hand, of course I want to make my OCs known because I love them to death. But at the same time I just. I WORRY about them being tossed to the dogs. I'm going to say probably Ora since I've developed her the most and she could hold her own against anyone who would be weird about her.

24. If you could meet one OC of yours, who would it be and why?

There's literally. They're all ghosts. If I met any of them I would be in such deep shit. Maybe Mossclaw because I would give her a good home where she would never have to worry about being a feral cat again. ;m;

#asked and answered #1ore #ask box meme response #ocs #denora walker #xiyu #elle #1130 #mossclaw #thank you so muuuuch ;m; <3 <3 <3

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annimator · 2 months

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All my OCs! :D

OC brainrot strikes again lol

It’s all under the cut as usual :p

Like I mentioned here and in Lance & Aaron’s backstory, my OC world, there are place I dubbed as “Academies”; places where people learn about the powers their spirit grants them and about all the supernatural creatures that exist in the world. My OCs are one of many people in this world that attend this Academy…

All twelve of them

There’s a lot I want to talk about that involves em buuuut I wanna talk more about their backstories in separate posts so I’ll basically go over the basics (Full name, pronouns, etc)

Something else to also note is that all of them take after me in way, some more than others ( *cough* C) because they inherit some of my interests, also I have zero clue on what their ages should be, but they’re approximately in their mid to late teens

So Let’s begin!

Macy Kaiyo

Pronouns - She/Her

Species - Merling (can shift between a human and mermaid form, her human form retains some of her mermaid traits though)

Inherited Interest - Anime and affinity for marine biology

Spirit’s Elements - Water, Nature, and Acid

Surname Translation - Japanese for Ocean

OC Fact - My first post on this blog was a bunch of sketches of her! Her design was tweaked since then tho :p

Iris Duwende

Pronouns - She/Her

Species - Elf (usually has an affinity with magic relating to nature)

Inherited Interest - Lofi music and affinity for nature

Spirit’s Elements - Nature, Water, and Crystal

Surname Translation - Filipino for Elf

OC Fact - Her design has her wear headphones. It’s not that she’s ashamed of her elf background, she’s usually listening to music most of the time :p

Marcus Chorui

Pronouns - He/Him

Species - Avian (Cardinal Hybrid)

Inherited Interest - Indie games

Spirit’s Elements - Has a desire to learn all of them, but mainly uses Air, Lightning, and Fire

Surname Translation - Japanese for Avian

OC Fact - His playlist would just be a bunch of songs from TheLivingTombstone and TryHardNinja lol

Liam Sora

Pronouns - He/Him

Species - Sky Mage (Mage with an affinity for sky related elements like lightning and air)

Inherited Interest - Books and Greek Mythology

Spirit’s Elements - Has a desire to learn all of them, but mainly uses Lightning, Air, and Nature

Surname Translation - Japanese for Sky

OC Fact - His main weapon is a spear and its a pain in the ass to draw -_-

Kumiho Xiyue

Pronouns - They/Them

Species - Lava Kitsune (Specialized in Earth and Fire)

Inherited Interest - Cartoons

Spirit’s Elements - Earth, Fire, Metal, and Lava

Surname Translation - Chinese for Joy

OC Fact - Their favourite show is The Last Airbender! Kinda explains their elements lol

Zac Ongaku

Pronouns - They/Them

Species - Shapeshifter (They can turn into many different animals or just turn a specific part of his body into a certain animal part in a similar way to Amajiki from MHA)

Inherited Interest - Music and 2010s nostalgia

Spirit’s Elements - Sound, Animal, Fire, and Water

Surname Translation - Japanese for Music

OC Fact - Zac mainly shifts into the form of a siren. They’re a shapeshifter because of their Dad (who wasn’t present for most of their life because he died when they were young), but their mom is a siren.

C Lumikha

Pronouns - He/They

Species - Creation Mage (Mage with an affinity for the Creation element)

Inherited Interest - yes Internet Culture

Spirit’s Elements - Has a desire to learn all of them, but mainly uses Creation and Ice

Surname Translation - Filipino for Create

OC Fact - He’s my favourite OC :D

Jadeyn Ongaku

Pronouns - They/Them

Species - Slime Elemental

Inherited Interest - Nintendo games and affinity for pre 2010s stuff

Spirit’s Elements - Slime and Mind

Surname Translation - Japanese for Music

OC Fact - I drew my Ipad’s wallapaper a year ago, and it’s a picture of them sitting on a dock whilst gazing at the water :D

Lance Espada

Pronouns - Any

Species - Android? (its complicated. Like he’s basically an android, but she still has her soul intact from when they were human and-)

Inherited Interest - Affinity for Astronomy and Technology

Spirit’s Elements - Technology, Light, and Soul

Surname Translation - Filipino for Sword

OC Fact - I thought it’d be cool to give him a cybernetic arm, I didn’t know it would derail into them becoming a whole fuckin android-

Aaron Makina

Pronouns - He/They

Species - Light Fairy (Specialized in the Light element)

Inherited Interest - Affinity for Astronomy and Technology

Spirit’s Elements - Light, Technology, and Soul

Surname Translation - Filipino for Machine

OC Fact - Aaron was originally a Light Elf, but then I said “lol what if he had wings but they had them ripped from his back” (they end up growing back dw)

Mercy Alis

Pronouns - She/They

Inherited Interest/Trait - Affinity for Fantasy (magic, creatures, etc) and Morbid curiosity

Spirit’s elements - Soul, Fire, Ice, and Creation

Surname Translation - Latin for Wings

OC Fact - I was not aware that Mercy would be the THIRD OC I’d make with a name that starts with M when creating them, whoops :p

Geno Caedes

Pronouns - She/They

Inherited Interest/Trait - Morbid Curiosity and affinity for Fantasy

Spirit’s elements - Soul, Ice, Fire, and Creation

Surname Translation - Latin for Murder

OC Fact - Geno’s name is derived from the word “Genocide”. I created her and Mercy at the same time so I think it fits them :D

#anni’s ocs

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guzhuangheaven · 3 years

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Guzhuang Appreciation Month: badass dialogues

(but in the novel)

legend of ruyi :: ep 5 // ep 78

This drama is so amazing, demonstrated by these two scenes. Here you have Ruyi and Hongli watching the same play at two different stages in their lives. In episode 5, they are still clearly in love and are happy watching the play together, leaning lovingly against each other and moving in unison as one. They are also being watched fondly by Aruo, who has yet to have ideas of betraying Ruyi. Many years later, in episode 78, we have Ruyi and Hongli watching the same play, but they are physically far apart and their emotional distance from each other is also clear on their faces. They are literally being divided by the presence of Ling Yunche standing between them.

I find the parallel between the closeups of Aruo and Ling Yunche the most heartbreaking, because Aruo, despite how happy she looks for them in ep 5, would eventually try to break Ruyi and Hongli apart. And yet for all her efforts, she never succeeds because Hongli never actually believes her. On the other hand, Ling Yunche never tries to get in between Ruyi and Hongli, but just the mere presence of him is enough for Hongli to drive a wedge between himself and Ruyi. The presence of Aruo and Ling Yunche in this scene drives home the stark contrast in how the relationship has deteriorated between Ruyi and Hongli, and how Hongli went from trusting Ruyi despite all evidence against her to believing the worst of her despite no real evidence.

What is even more heartbreaking is the play they are watching. It’s not made very clear in the drama, but the plot of the play has great significance in the novel. The play they are watching is called 墙头马上 / Over the Wall and Atop a Horse. The play is based on the poem 井底引银瓶 Silver Vase at the Bottom of the Well by Bai Juyi.

The poem by Bai Juyi, writes of a broken relationship/friendship where two people once lived happily in harmony, then one person wronged the other, causing the other person to leave and never come back; the relationship is thus severed.

When the poem was adapted into the play 墙头马上 / Over the Wall and Atop a Horse, the play tells the story of Pei Shaojun falling in love at first sight with Li Qianjin when she was standing by a wall and he was on a horse riding by her house. The two then eloped, and lived together for seven years, having two children together, before they were discovered by Pei Shaojun’s father. Upon the discovery, Li Qianjin was condemned for getting into a clandestine relationship and Pei Shaojun caved to parental pressure and divorced her. She went back to her hometown. Many years later, after having achieved political success, Pei Shaojun went looking for Li Qianjin again, and just happened to discover that the two of them were actually engaged as children. In the play, they then reunited, got remarried and lived happily ever after.

There is however a plot point in the Ruyi novel, where Qingying does not like the ending of the play, feeling that the happy ending was forced. In the novel, Hongli and Qingying only know each other in passing at first. Then on the day that Hongli chooses his wives, Qingying is made to attend by her aunt. Before the selection ceremony, everyone is invited to watch a play, and Hongli chooses Over the Wall and Atop a Horse. Qingying, because she dislikes the happy ending, asks the theatre troupe to change the ending of the play so that in the end, Li Qianjin does not actually get back together with Pei Shaojun but stays firm in her resolve to end the relationship between them. After the play ends, Qingying leaves before the selection, but Hongli becomes intrigued by her changed ending and chases after her. This conversation below ensues, in which you can see clearly how Qingying’s belief on the matter stayed constant with her through the years. In fact, she practically predicts her own fate later with her changed ending.

~*~

Qingying stepped lightly ahead, her gown fluttering in the breeze like a white butterfly in flight. Aruo’s face was robbed of all colour and she was crying in despair. “Gege, what is wrong with you? Everything was well, why did you change the ending of the play? If Huang Hou Niang Niang hears about it, what will you do?”

Qingying shrugged. “At most, Aunt will just scold me a little. I just don’t like that ending. Today, I finally got to see how it should be played out. I’m so happy!”

“Gege might be happy,” Aruo said miserably, “but today is the consort selection. If Gege you are not chosen, then what would we do?”

Qingying’s aunt had already intended her to be the Third Prince’s bride, and now that was not successful, she should be pushed to the Fourth Prince instead? If they needed this one forced marriage to prolong their family’s glory, would that mean all women of the Ulanara clan were little better than slaves? It would be better this way. Regardless of whether she succeeded at being chosen to be a prince’s consort or not, she got to see things done her way, for once.

She only managed a few steps more when suddenly a voice called behind her. “Qingying Meimei!”

No one had ever called her that before. Everyone in the palace simply called her “Qingying Gege”. Curious, she turned her head to find that Hongli was chasing after her.

Thinking that he must wish to reprimand her, Qingying made herself as small as possible.

Hongli only laughed. “I chased after you to comfort you. Xiyue Gege was rude in speech, I feared that you would be offended.”

“Offended? About what?” Qingying asked in a low voice. “Fourth Prince, do you mean to mention the fact that I was rejected by the Third Prince?”

Hongli nodded, frowning. “I only fear such talk will destroy your reputation.”

Qingying laughed, all her teeth showing, against all rules of decorum, which seemed to astonish Hongli.

“I don’t care!” she declared. “There are many things that women can’t necessarily decide for themselves, such as marriage, or family. But at least, I can decide whether to mind those mocking talks, whether to care about them and let them hurt me.”

Hongli looked sad for a moment, whispering, “Your family…” But then he trailed off. Then, with a humourless smile, he said, “Over the Wall and Atop a Horse is the play I chose myself, why did you not like the ending and asked them to change it? I pick a plum blossom, lean against the wall. / You ride off among the bending poplars*. Is that not a lovely image?”

“Yes, it is very nice, it’s just…” Qingying thought a moment then said, “Over the wall and atop a horse we gaze at each other. / I know you, too, must be heartbroken*. From this beginning, the play is full of conflicts, ups and downs, all very compelling, yet in the end, there is a forced happy ending, everyone is forced to be happy, I really don’t like it at all.”

[* excerpts from the poem by Bai Juyi]

Hongli looked displeased, asking, “To be able to mend a broken mirror, husband and wife reunited and at peace again, is that not good?”

“When Li Qianjin was being insulted by Pei Shaojun’s parents, he did not protect her. He watched her leave in humiliation and did not stop her, as if all the love and years they shared did not matter. Such a heartless and weak man who dares not protect his woman, why would Li Qianjin want to get back together with him?”

Her voice was soft, but also full of conviction. Even though it went against Hongli’s beliefs, he wanted to keep her talking.

“To be reunited and together in harmony is the wishes of all families on earth. If Pei Shaojun is willing to start over, why would Li Qianjin not forgive him?”

“Why must a woman always forgive a man for his failings? Wouldn’t that teach the man that it doesn’t matter what hurt he causes? I don’t care, if he hurt her, she shouldn’t forgive him.”

“Women must be soft and gentle, and give into her husband. If she sacrifices a little, bears a little hurt feeling, they can be reunited, isn’t that happiness?”

“If she must be hurt, must sacrifice herself for this forced reunion, then it is already not a good marriage,” Qingying said stubbornly. “In my eyes, Li Qianjin is a woman who is willing to walk away, to severe the relationship, because all trust is gone.”

“If she walks away, wouldn’t that mean she spends the rest of her life alone? Everyone has their own difficult moments, if Li Qianjin is so stubborn, Pei Shaojun is put in a difficult position too.”

“Who isn’t in a difficult position?” Qingying asked. “If the woman can understand the man’s difficulties, can a man not understand a woman’s pain of being cast aside and humiliated?”

Hongli thought for a moment then laughed. “Qingying Meimei, you are much too unbending.”

Qingying merely nodded. “It’s better to live the rest of your life alone, rather than live to old age with someone who already betrayed you once. So it might be harmonious today, but if a conflict arises, what is to say Pei Shaojun will not just forsake Li Qianjin again? It is easy to change mountains**, that is the principle here.”

[** there is a Chinese saying that it is easier to change the course of rivers and shapes of mountains than to change the character of a person… aka old habits die hard but with more stakes.]

Hongli still did not agree with her logic. “Women should place obedience before all and be pliable. If she does not restrain herself and be more accepting for the greater good, then she would just suffer.”

“If one must accept being humiliated for a so-called happy ending, then I don’t want that kind of happy ending,” Qingying repeated.

“Then is Over the wall and atop a horse we gaze at each other so easily forgotten?” Hongli asked, astonished.

Qingyin turned and stared at Hongli. “If it is not easily forgotten, then why didn’t Pei Shaojun protect Li Qianjin? Hasn’t he too forgotten how they once loved each other when he cast her aside?”

Hongli could not argue against her, and finally admitted defeat. “Meimei, you really are something, I don’t know what else to say.”

Qingying laughed in delight.

“Meimei,” Hongli said, stepping closer to her, “you argued so animatedly, you must love Over the Wall and Atop a Horse. Why don’t we go back and hear the play again?”

Qingying hesitated, thinking that it would be a great loss of face if she were to return now. But Hongli was looking at her so earnestly, she found it hard to immediately refuse.

“I’ll go back first, and prepare good tea to wait for you.”

He said ‘wait’, as if he would not move the day along if she did not come. Her heart softened, and she suddenly stopped in her path.

…

[And then of course Qingying comes back to attend the selection. Hongli, who had originally intended to choose Langhua, changes his mind and chose Qingying to be his di fujin, but then Yongzheng interfered and put a stop to it… But the play is one massive foreshadowing plot device that doesn’t get explained much in the drama, but packs a punch when you read this scene.] -h

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hanfugallery · 3 years

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笠帽limao, a general term for a type of Chinese hanfu hat, characterized by a wide brim. The primary form had already appeared during the Shang and Zhou dynasties( 1600 B.C.-256B.C.), and its invention was naturally related to shading from the sun and rain, with a large brim that could both block the rain and shade the sun. In ancient China, limao笠帽 were made of many materials, including bamboo baskets, pouches, ramie, yarn etc. The shape of limao笠帽 is with usually large brim, round, square or pointed tops. The later it was developed, the more it resembled today's hats. In the Ming Dynasty this hat was called a damao大帽, yet it's been around before Ming, inherited from the Song Dynasty and earlier dynasties.

The picture below shows two limao unearthed from the tomb of the Yuan Dynasty minister Wang Shixian汪世显.

Then let's take a look at what the limao笠帽 looked like worn by Ming Dynasty soldiers.

What about the damao大帽 worn by non-military officials and civilians in Ming dynasty?

So how did the term of damao in Ming dynasty come about? The origin of damao is recorded in an ancient book of the Ming Dynasty, san cai tu hui《三才图会》(1607). This book is an encyclopedic book written by 王圻Wang Qi and his song 王思义Wang Siyi, who were literature scholars and book collectors during the Ming Dynasty. Here is the quote 《三才图会》:“大帽，尝见稗官云:国初高皇幸学，见诸生班烈日中，因赐遮荫帽，此其制也，今起家科贡者用之。” Generally when Zhu Yuanzhang, the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty, saw the students taking the imperial examinations sweating in the scorching sun, he gave them damao to protect them from the sun.

The image below is a painting from the Tang dynasty, showing that the basic shape of the damao differs little from that of the Tang dynasty.

The 平番得胜图ping fan de sheng tu is currently housed in the National Museum of China and is considered to be an accurate portrayal of the Ming dynasty's army and is of high reference value.

The above is the consistent history of limao笠帽 in Chinese hanfu. limao was a very common hat in all Chinese dynasties, worn by all classes. The basic shape with a high top made of black gauze and a knotted cord appeared early on. Of course, hats with brims is a common thing for every culture and are found in all parts of the world, just as Eastern and Western civilizations coincidentally documented the prehistoric Flood.

For those interested in more specialized and complete information, here is a ten-minute video detailing the history of limao.

To summarize, limao was first seen in the Han Dynasty terracotta figurines, called li笠, and documented in writings in the ancient book 急就篇(48b.c.-33b.c.), but the brim was not as big as it is now, in the Northern Dynasty(386-581), limao was inspired by the Xianbei people whose ancestors were nomads in ancient Siberia, so the brim was widened, and the top of the hat was added (recorded in the Northern Dynasty mural) and is almost the same as now, after the consistent development recorded but not limited to the Tang Dynasty terracotta figurines and Song Dynasty paintings, especially that Fanyangli influenced the limao style of the Yuan dynasty, and then the Yuan emperor Kublai Khan added curtains behind the limao, and beads and feathers according to the Mongolian custom, and then Ming emperors removed the curtains in the early Ming dynasty, forming a variety of styles.

Facts about damao in Ming dynasty

1. damao was influenced by limao of all the previous dynasties, and arose spontaneously. ✔️

2. damao usually have round top, but there were also other forms of top, such as the quadrilateral.✔️

2. In the early Ming dynasty, influenced by the Mongolian style of the Yuan dynasty (Mongolia added the beads according to its own nomadic style), damao used the gems or beads as a string. ✔️

3. In the middle of the fifteenth century, Emperor Yingzong abolished the bead-string, stipulating that the damao could only be worn with plain string. ✔️

4. The adornment of damao was mainly on the top, with jewels, feathers, and red tassels.✔️

5. From ancient paintings, the decorative method of inserting feathers on one or both sides of the hat, is found in the Ming Dynasty and previous dynasties.✔️

6. damao usually matches with wangjin网巾, a kind of mesh scarf tied back the bangs neatly. ✔️

Now high-priced hanfu stores are making the damao exactly according to the Ming Dynasty style, and are considered historically accurate. However, some middle or low priced hanfu store are lazy and don't make it accurately, so the details are confused with another country' traditional hats with brim, or even worse. A few days ago a famous chinese artist accidentally used the picture of damao of that lazy store as reference to draw her super popular characters and post it on twitter, it could be controversial and offensive to some people from another culture who are not familiar with hanfu and lead to misunderstanding. And then she experienced cyberbullying which is really bad. (btw she also provides the correct ancient Ming portrait as a reference though

I have cautiously observed, and must state that the damao she drew does not show a very clear feature that significantly different from the Ming dynasty damao of a traditional hat from another culture, and I think one reference picture of damao from taobao store does have a slight problem and is ambiguous. Incidentally, the non-damao hat that worn by the other character has also attracted criticism is no problem and actually called yishanguan翼善冠, one of the traditional types of hats for Chinese hanfu, which I will describe later.

Well, you get the idea.

In a more general sense, was the ancient Chinese costume culture, while retaining its original form, influenced by xiyu culture (a general reference to non-Chinese countries on the Silk Road, the ancient cultures of Western and Central Asia and the ancient states, xiyu西域 literally meaning western region) and nomadic cultures such as xianbei culture? Yes, especially in the Tang Dynasty. For example, yuanlingpao圆领袍/rongfu戎服. Did ancient China radiate its costume culture to its neighbors(not all of them), leaving behind similar or even convergent forms, while at the same time they developing their own local characteristics? Yes. If a culture had close contact with China in ancient times, but is geographically separated from China by a long distance or even by the sea, the later its identity will become stronger, and what used to look like Chinese clothing will become less obvious, such as the kimono.

Here are examples of the basically accurate damao in style of ming dynasty by hanfu store. It does not contain all the types.

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captain-apostrophe · 3 years

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Ok shy anon here, I think I finally narrowed down what I wanted to ask prompt wise haha

How about some Sangcheng with the juniors with the [19] zoom meeting gone wrong prompt 😂

You’re so amazing for doing this 🙈💓

It obviously stands alone (except maybe for Xiyue - but from context you can probably guess that she's Jin Ling's little sister) but I just couldn't think about this combination of characters without it being their versions from my Jianghu City series - so for anybody reading We Both Know Better consider this set some time after the end of the fic. I hope you like it, anon! <3

(also available on ao3, if you prefer to read there.)

[gen; SangCheng; Juniors Quartet; Zoom meeting gone wrong]

- Council -

"I suppose," Jingyi said, dramatically, "that you're wondering why I've gathered you all here today."

(Huaisang, mic muted, turned to holler for his husband.

"You're missing it!")

"No," Jin Ling muttered. "We already know it's gonna be something dumb."

"Yes," Sizhui said, much more patiently - he was always patient, with everyone, but of course especially so with Jingyi. "Why are we here?"

"Well, as you all know, it's almost -"

"April Fool's Day?" Zizhen interrupted, bouncing up and down in his excitement. Whatever device he was using was handheld, and wobbled nauseatingly as he moved.

By Jingyi's glare, he'd guessed correctly.

("Tell him to wait!" Wanyin called back. "I need like thirty seconds!"

"He's not gonna wait!")

"- April Fool's Day," Jingyi finished, thunder stolen but determined anyway. "And that means -"

"Pranks!" Xiyue guessed, shoving her way into frame beside her brother. "I wanna be a ghost!"

"That's Halloween, idiot."

Jin Ling shoved her; she shoved back, then ducked back out of his reach and ran off.

"MAMA JIN LING CALLED ME A NAAAAAAAAME!"

"It means," Jingyi continued, clearly trying really hard to keep his shit together in the face of this terrible adversity, "that we all have a nemesis in common."

("What is it? Is he waiting?"

"It's a war council, I think. Hey, bring me a drink when you come in!"

Wanyin, who by his footsteps had been on his way in, groaned and ran back in the direction of the kitchen.)

"I don't think I have a nemesis at all," Zizhen said. "Are you sure?"

"He's just being dramatic," Jin Ling assured him.

"Our nemesis," Jingyi said, raising his voice to cut over their chatter, "is also known as the Menace Wei Wuxian."

The kids all responded with knowing 'oh's. Even Zizhen was around the family enough to have been hit by his share of Wuxian's pranks over the years. Huaisang himself had lost a cashmerino scarf to one, though that had been accidental and Wuxian had apologised profusely... whilst maintaining that it had been hilarious though, c'mon Nie-xiong don't look like that, you should've seen your face.

"Hey, you started without me," Wanyin said as he leaned in over Huaisang's shoulder to set down a glass of water. "Didn't you ask him to wait?"

"Kids these days," Huaisang said, avoiding the question. "So impatient."

"And so," Jingyi almost shouted, "I propose that we team up to not only defend ourselves but take back the holiday for ourselves. As your commander -"

He was forced to stop, then, as everybody began to talk over him, every one of them demanding to know why Jingyi was the commander. Huaisang joined in, but just to be an asshole. He didn't actually want to be in charge of... whatever this was.

Jingyi muted everybody except himself, then continued.

"I knew we shouldn't have let him host this call," Wanyin muttered.

"As your commander I'm assigning everybody a role. Sizhui, Laoshi, you're closest to the mark, you're on recon. Zizhen I need you to make a crazy conspiracy wall because you have the art supplies and also he won't randomly show up at your house and bust us. Jin Ling you have the best phone so you're on comms coordinating us all. Me and Nie-shushu are obviously the most chaotic ones here so us, and Xiyue ONLY IF SHE CAN KEEP A SECRET, will come up with ideas for retaliation."

He paused to smile beatifically before unmuting everybody.

"Any questions?"

They undoubtedly did have questions, but before anybody could ask them... a familiar voice issued from somewhere out of Sizhui's frame.

"Just one," the Menace himself asked. "Kid, did you really think that you could outwit me? I was pranking before you were born! You're in my world now!"

He skidded into view, wrapped his arms around a guilty-faced Sizhui, and dropped his head on the boy's chin, and grinned.

"Better luck next year."

#prompt fill #fic-iversary prompts #the untamed #fanfic #sangcheng #juniors quartet #zoom meeting gone wrong #cap' writes

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sagedgeek · 3 years

Text

A Foundling

Part 3 of Whispers of Fate (A Rey Djarin fic)

Summary: The tribe doesn’t agree with Din’s decision. It’s time for him to accept this new responsibility, despite his effort to avoid it.

Rating: Gen (Platonic)

Word Count: 4.9k

Previous Chapter ~ Masterlist ~ Next Chapter

Din rubs his thumb over the smooth surface of the beskar ingot he held in his hand. He stood outside the entrance to the covert, staring at the cloth draped over the entrance as he contemplated whether he should come back another time after Rey had more time to grow used to the others. Then again, she might’ve calmed down soon after he left the day prior.

He's put this off for an entire day already… much longer than he should have. He could be halfway to Arvala by now if he had simply left right after receiving his assignment. But his worry and insecurity had got the best of him and he spent the better part of the day doing menial repairs to his ship and stocking up on rations and other essentials he’s burned through as he continuously fretted over returning to the covert to see how Rey was adjusting. And maybe even perhaps offer a proper fairwell with a promise to return any word he may find about her parents.

Soon after he left, he had regretted not staying a bit longer to help her adjust. It was a startling change in environment for her, being dumped into a maze of dark sewers surrounded by masked faces of unfamiliar characters. He’d been through the same affair when he was brought to the Mandalorians, but there were many there more than willing to care for him and nurture him until he was able to begin his training, and he knows that’s what Rey needed. He never had a proper buir or Mandalorian family of his own, and the closest he had to one was the man who had saved him. He died soon after Din began his training, but the tribe still raised him alongside the other Foundlings, as if he was one of their own.

Times were different now. Foundlings were rare and very special to the tribe, even more so than before. There were many practiced Mandalorian mothers and fathers in the covert that would be more than willing to take in such a promising young child as Rey and be a much better caretaker to her than Din himself. She needed the support and stability that he could never offer her, but still… that didn’t ease the guilt.

This morning is when he had made his decision. He was never one to loiter, and he never dallied when it came to a job, yet this time he felt a pull keeping him grounded on this ashy planet. So, he figured it would be best to make quick work of this and be on his way to rid himself of these distractions. One visit to the armorer and a couple questions of the girl’s wellbeing and that would be all. No strings attached.

He pulls the drapes back and begins his descent to the underground tunnels, and once he’s passed through the first threshold, he’s immediately stopped by a large hand extending from the shadows and landing on his chest. His first instinct is to attack before his opponent can exploit the well-executed surprise, but patience and reason remind him he’s in the covert and there were no enemies down here.

So, he simply raises his hand to clasp down on the gloved wrist on his chest in warning.

“You shouldn’t have come back,” Paz replied with a gruff and irritated tone, as he stepped from the dark shadows. “It will upset the child again.”

Din turns his head to look up at the taller Mandalorian. Paz has been a close companion of his since he was young, and still one of many he considers to be a trusted friend.

“I didn’t come to see her,” he lied.

“You should’ve taken her with you,” Paz snaps right back at him; never one to beat around the bush. “She is a Foundling, and she is scared. She doesn’t trust us. You should’ve stayed at least until she grew comfortable.”

Din grips Paz’s wrist even tighter pulling it away from his chest plate with a scowl. “I have a job. It is not safe for her.”

“She is a fighter,” Paz counters.

Din pushes away from him, moving further through the halls to try and put an end to the discussion. Paz follows him though, continuing with his lecture which Din tries to ignore. “She has tried running three times since you left and fought Gutt and Ovod with a staff she stole from the armory. We had to lock her away with the healer, away from the other children.”

“She will grow used to you all here,” Din replied, “just like she did me.”

“Don’t be so sure of that Djarin. She’s as bull-headed as you. Atin Djarin,” Paz mutters the familiar exclamation under his breath and Din smirks beneath the helmet. Paz was most definitely right, Rey was quite stubborn from what he could tell so far.

Paz followed him to the armorer’s forge, loitering around by the entrance as Din’s new pauldron was crafted out of his newly acquired beskar.

“This is extremely generous,” the armorer states as the molten beskar fits into the mold. “The excess will sponsor many foundlings… including the new adiik you brought to us.”

“That’s good.” He can feel the strong glare of Paz burning into the back of his helmet. “She will make a powerful Mandalorian.”

“That she will,” the armorer agrees.

When the pauldron is finished, she approaches and attaches it to his body stocking. “The little one has caused quite the ruckus down here,” she announces while taking a single step away from him to admire her work.

“So, I’ve been told,” Din stands, turning to retrieve his Amban rifle that he’d propped against the wall when he arrived.

“She has nearly been successful in leaving the covert herself… had she been she would have exposed the location of the tribe.”

Din pauses, back still to her and he turns around slowly.

“Most Foundlings are not so fierce. Where does she come from?”

He turns to her, ignoring the pointed nod of his helmet that Paz directs towards him. “I found her on a backwater skug hole called Jakku. She was a slave scrapper for two years after her parents abandoned her there.”

The armorer nods once and turns back towards the smelter. “She is strong, but she will need proper guidance and training.”

“Yes,” Din agrees. That is exactly why he brought her here.

She turns back to face him, now several feet away and her hands clasped behind her back. “She will not find that here.”

Din takes a startled step towards her. “What do you mean?”

“She does not trust easily, and she will have no trust for us that much is clear. We were not the ones to save her, and she will grow to resent the tribe. Any training we will provide to her as we would a Foundling would prove as a danger to the tribe and the rest of the Foundlings. The anger and desperation I sense in her will only give more strength; a corrupted strength absent of honor or trust. I’ve seen it happen twice before. Neither ended well for Mandalor. and just like them she will grow to hate the Mandalorians for stealing her from her home twice over.”

“Twice?”

“You, Djarin. You were her second home whether you may see it that way or not.”

“She has only known me for a short time. That’s not possible.”

“She was abandoned as a young child Djarin… by parents who may or may not have loved her. Care, stability, and trust has been absent most of her young life, and you were the first to give it to her after many years of imposed independence and suffering. It was inevitable for her to form such a strong attachment. And it is very well that after you left her here, she will never care to trust anyone again. In her eyes, you were as her new father. Another father who abandoned her.”

“I cannot care for a Foundling,” Din reiterates desperately. He cannot care for a Foundling. “It is too dangerous.”

“So, it is your job to protect her.”

“I can’t--”

“You will.” Paz steps in, voice strong and undeterred. “The Foundling has chosen you and it would be dishonorable to decline. This is the way.”

“This is the way,” the armorer speaks in response, and then both turn towards him expectantly.

Din hesitates, feeling a surge of panic overcome him. He had no choice… this was the way. It was only a technicality, but one that left him no choice. And by denying this responsibility, he would in a sense be abandoning his own child, which by extension would be breaking his creed. Dar’manda.

“This is the way.”

The armorer nods. “Good. Now the child has no need to know you did not request this privilege. You will raise her as your own, teach her the ways of Mandalor, and when she comes of age, she will have the choice to vow and accept the creed. Vizla will take you to where she’s being held.”

So, Paz leads Din further into the covert, past several gatherings of his tribe members and to a barred door Din knows to be the infirmary. He’d been a consistent guest to Xiyu during his early days of bounty hunting.

“Was she hurt?” Din asked.

Paz ignores him and lifts the latch of the heavy door to push it open.

“Xiyu, Rey’s buir is here for her. Thank you for watching over her.” Paz tells the tribe healer sitting beside the cot Rey had curled herself up on.

The older Mandalorian stands slowly and she makes her way towards the door with a small nod of her head. “That is good. She was not doing well. She is no longer angry... just sad and tired.” She pauses when she notices Din. “Djarin? You?”

He nods his head. There was no need in denying it anymore.

The older woman looks at him with a nod of approval. “She will do good for you Djarin.” Then she walks away without another word, and Paz makes a gesture for him to enter the room ahead of him.

“Kid,” Din speaks slowly, clearing his throat as he approaches the cot. He felt nervous and frustrated. He had no clue how to care for a child, and absolutely no desire to learn, but now he had to. There were so many things he needed to change and add to the Crest to fit her needs…

She recoils at his voice, pulling her face to her knees and hugging them close. She was still wearing his old tunic and had not changed into the new clothes he bought for her. They sat lying on a platform beside the cot, along with a few added accessories courtesy of the rest of the tribe.

“Rey, it’s time to go.”

She shakes her head stiffly, back still facing the two Mandalorians. “I don’t wanna go anywhere with you,” she bites out with a nasty growl.

“Would you rather stay here then?” Din counters with a scoff.

Din can tell by the squaring of her shoulders that she found herself in a bit of deadlock and she mutters something under her breath which he could barely here.

“Where you gonna drop me off this time, Mando?” She says his name like it’s a curse in her mouth.

“He wants to take you with him,” Paz steps in, approaching the cot and effectively pushing Din out of the way to avoid the tension and anger from progressing any further. Apparently, having two frustrated, stubborn blockheads in the same room would not spawn a peaceful interaction.

Rey turns to look up at Paz, eyes rimmed red and puffy. She doesn’t look at Din. “Why?” She asks him, tears evident in her voice.

“Because you belong with him.” Paz takes her hand gently and helps her sit up on the cot. He’d always been particularly fond of children, ever since their teenage years. He did well with them… unlike Din. “Now let’s get you changed into those new clothes so you can be on your way verd’ika, yeah?”

She nods softly, rubbing one eye with the back of her hand and sniffling lightly. Paz gently lifts her from the cot and into his arms. Rey wraps her arms around his neck and drops her forehead against the large man’s shoulder which has Din scoffing scornfully.

Bantha shit!

Why isn’t Paz the one caring for the child?? He was obviously much better suited for a Foundling.

Paz must sense his glare and he turns towards him with the child in one arm as he scoops up her clothes in the other. He tilts his helmet, lifting the chin just enough so Din won’t mistake it for affection or curiosity, but as the challenge it was.

“Would you prefer to carry her?”

Din frowns. No, he’d rather not.

His fingers twitch and tense as he squeezes them together.

“She’s perfectly capable of walking on her own.”

The statement doesn’t please Paz, that much was clear, as he shoulders past Din and exits the room. He leads them towards a private area and sets Rey down on her feet. He’s squatted in front of her, holding out each item of clothing to her.

“Do you need any help? I can call Xiyu.”

She shook her head and took the clothes from him, retreating into the private room to change.

“She seemed awfully fond of you,” Din muttered once the thick curtain was pulled closed.

Paz turned to look at him. “The last I saw her she nearly tore my helmet after she knocked me on my back. That was the first I’d seen her act civil.”

Rey steps out from behind the curtain, wearing her new clothes. It fit her nicely. She wore a dark grey long tunic that went to midthigh sinched by a nice brown leather belt around her waist which had several accessories for attachments similar to Din’s. Over it she wore sleeveless vest with a high collar. And of course, the tan utility trousers and sturdy leather boots. She came out holding her old clothes to her chest shyly. Her hair was down, no longer in its braid and she looked up at Din with wide eyes and a sad frown.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, standing right in front of him. “I’m sorry I asked so many questions. I won’t anymore. I promise.” She shuffles closer to him, pressing her forehead against the soft padding below his cuirass.

Din sighed in resignation and placed his hand atop her head, gently petting her long brown hair to offer some sort of comfort.

“Don’t apologize for being curious,” he instructs softly.

She steps away from him, staring up into his visor with shiny eyes all the while. Then she turns to look over at Paz. “I’m sorry for being mean to you and everyone else.”

“There’s no need to worry about it verd’ika.” Rey smiles at him, seeming to be much less forlorn than before.

“Come,” Din says, ready to get back to his ship and get on his way. He gestures for Rey to begin walking in front of him, then turns his head to face Paz. “I’ll return soon.”

Rey doesn’t chatter his ear off as they walk back to the Crest. She doesn’t even grab onto his cloak as they march through the busy streets of Nevarro. Even once they’re sailing out the atmosphere and into the empty cavern of space, Rey had yet to express any excitement or curiosity. It was completely silent in the cockpit. She sat quietly in her chair, staring out at the stars without so much a word.

“Kid,” Din starts, unsure of what he even wanted to ask, “Is everything alright?”

He turns his head so he can peek over his shoulder at her, and she only shrugs her shoulders, pulling the blanket bunched in her hands over her nose.

Din spins in his chair to face her and she flinches away from him at the sudden movement.

“Rey.”

She looks at him with big eyes from underneath the hem of her blanket. “I-I…” she starts. “Are you taking me back to Jakku now?”

Din tilts his head at her in confusion. “No. You’re staying with me.”

“But-but I thought—”

Din spins his chair back around. “No, I’m not taking you back there end of story. There’s no one to look out for you there. It isn’t safe.”

There are a couple moments of silence and Din thinks maybe Rey got the point. “I-I didn’t mean I wanted to go back…” she replies, her voice almost a squeak. “I just… I thought your tribe didn’t want to take care of me like you didn’t want to, and you were supposed to take me back.”

Din’s feels a sudden pain strike him in the chest and suddenly breathing made him nauseous. It’d been a while since he was able to actually sympathize with another person. And here Rey was sitting here thinking an entire tribe of people would turn their backs on her and leave her to the fate of the harsh wilderness of Jakku simply because she wasn’t wanted. How despicable the universe must have been to this little one for her to think anyone wouldn’t want her to be happy and safe.

Kriff, the only reason he handed her over the tribe to begin with was to keep her safe because he knew she wouldn’t be with him.

He sighs and slowly spins around once more. “That’s not what’s happening Rey.”

“Well, I sure know you didn’t come back for me! You obviously still don’t want me around!”

Din scowls. “You’re right,” he snaps at her, “I didn’t want you around. It’s dangerous and I don’t want to see you get hurt. That’s why I was taking you to my tribe; where you would have been safe while I looked for your family.” Rey stares at him and doesn’t utter a word to respond, and Din hesitates to continue. “Then they explained to me that you would do best staying with me. They would’ve loved to have you if you wanted to stay. Foundling’s are treasured by our culture; they are our future.”

“Oh.”

Din turns yet again, but Rey still hadn’t returned to her talkative self. Perhaps she was just tired like Xiyu had said. He glances down at the nav system he’d yet to set the coordinates into, then glanced back over his shoulder at Rey still staring out at the stars with a sad frown.

“Rey. Come here.” He gestures his hand to the space between himself and the control panel. “I need help inputting our next coordinates. And then I think it’s time you go down and sleep. It’s been a long day.”

Rey’s at his side in a matter of moments, wiping any lingering moisture in her eyes as she looks down at the display Din was pointing out to her. He guided her through punching in the correct numbers and she did well enough to coax a proud smile onto her face. She turned her grin up to him, looking for his validation and he gave it to her with a small nod of his head and awkward pat on the back.

“Now, go down and rest.”

Rey hesitates, her smile falling into a worried frown.

“You won’t leave me here?” Din doesn’t answer right away. “Right?” She reiterates a bit more desperately.

“No, I won’t leave you on the Crest.”

“Do you promise?” She holds up her hand to him, arching one brow in doubt.

Din stares at her outstretched palm in amusement. “What are you doing?”

Rey looks at him with a scoff. “It’s a handshake, dummy.” Din grunted. “It’s what people do when they agree on stuff,” she crosses her arms over her chest. “But you probably don’t know what that is, ‘cause you just punch ‘em till they do what you want.”

Din sighed to cover an involuntary chuckle and lifted his gloved hand towards her. She grabs it which ends up dwarfing her own as she shakes their joined hands adamantly and with such seriousness it was almost amusing.

Instead of letting go after the shake was finalized, Din gently tightens his grip on her hand and stands from the pilots chair, guiding her towards the ladder leading into the hull. It wasn’t exactly what he had expected of himself when he thought to tell the girl to go to bed, but something urged him to follow her down and make sure she was settled and comfortable in bed.

He begins by straightening out her bed of blankets on the floor which he had put the day prior as she went to the privy. So, it was all ready for her to dive right beneath the collection of blankets by the time she got out.

She’d forgone her new tunic and vest and had instead changed back into the oversized flight suit garb Din had let her borrow on her first night, claiming it was much more comfortable for sleeping. He says nothing more regarding that and drapes the top few blankets over her once she had settled.

“Am I allowed to ask questions?” She asks him meekly, pulling one of the blankets close to her nose as Din made sure she was situated properly and would remain warm throughout the night.

He nods.

“What kind of planet are we going to?”

Din stands and his knees pop slightly after kneeling on the hard floor. “It’s like Jakku, but with rocks.”

“Oh,” Rey nods, rolling onto her side so she could continue to look at him.

“Go to sleep.” He instructs with a tenderness that even surprised himself. “You need rest after such a long day.”

She listens. Smiling up at him just before her eyes slip closed. Her knees draw closer to her chest as she curls around her blankets. And he thinks she might have fallen asleep before he was even able to ascend the ladder.

***

It had taken approximately two and a half days before they landed on Arvala-7.

Din had used that time to clean the ship and do some on board maintenance he hadn’t gotten around to while he was twiddling his thumbs on Nevarro. Rey was a good help, always at his side and eager to aid him with whatever he asked, and apt to listen at whatever knowledge he was willing to bestow on her. She was much more subdued this time around though. She wasn’t nearly as talkative, and refrained from touching him in any way.

He should’ve found relief in her sudden change, but all he felt was guilt. He had broken her trust. The quiet was now almost suffocating in a way he’d never found it before, and it wasn’t like he knew how to fill a void of silence. He was perfectly fine working in silence—awkward or not—but what irked him was knowing the child was upset with him. The child he was supposed to be caring for, and he didn’t know how to fix it.

She would ask a necessary question here and there, but never really stemming from her parched curiosity. And considering the little she knew about the galaxy beyond her small world of Jakku, that could prove to be a hindrance later on if this continued. As his logic dictated, it was good for a child to be curious and question their surroundings. It was how they learned.

However, that was a problem he’d decided was to be tackled another time when he was perhaps a bit more comfortable with this newfound guardianship role. Instead, he’d found that Rey was quite proficient with the mechanics of his ship and was quick to catch on to small things he’d teach her, similar to her “piloting” skills which consisted mainly of fabricated procedures to keep her busy and entertained amongst the unprogrammed buttons and switches beside her seat. Either way, she was good at following instructions, even when he could tell she found some things just a bit ludicrous.

They spent quite a bit of time with each other on the Crest during those two days. It was inevitable considering the cramped quarters. And Din made extra care not to scold or discourage her if it was not necessary which most times it definitely wasn’t.

So, by the time they had landed, it was easy to tell Rey had grown a bit more comfortable with him. She was eager to help him land the ship, and that time he may have given her a few real switches to flip through. As soon as they’d touched down, she bolted down into the hull before everything could even be properly powered down. Din sighed in amusement and went about shutting down the Crest. By the time he’d slowly stepped his way into the hull, Rey was standing over by the loading ramp, dressed in her new clothes, hair done up in a proper braid, and her shoes on and ready to go with her makeshift staff in hand as she bounced on her toes.

“Someone’s eager.” He quipped lightly, tapping on his vambrace to open the weapons cabinet. He pulls out his rifle, tucks it under his arm and makes his way towards her, pushing a button on the control pad to lower the ramp. “Stick close to me. Understand?”

Rey nods emphatically, staring out at the rocky expanse that’s revealed as the ramp lowers to the muddy ground. Din could tell she was tempted to dart ahead of him to explore, but she does as he says and stays by his side as he moves to the middle of the small clearing he’d landed his ship in. He holds the fob outwards to test the signal and drops his arm in agitation as he looks out into the vacant landscape.

He turns towards Rey and holds out the fob towards her. “Your job is to hold this. Don’t lose it.”

She takes it from him, cradling it gently in her hands as she stares down at the blinking light. Din lifts his rifle to peer through the scope and she’s none the wiser as she traces the small box with her finger. Enthralled with the tiny device as it beeps slowly. She looks up just in time to see a big fishy creature charging right at them.

“Mando!” She shouts, startling the Mandalorian from his focus. He tosses her out of the way just as the beast grabs his arm and hauls him back a good ways, tossing him around like a dead womp rat.

Rey looked on horrified, frozen in place. For the first time since she met him, Mando didn’t seem to have the situation under control. It didn’t take but a couple more moments of her silent terror that she was shaking it off and charging the beast. It’d grabbed hold of Mando again after he’d escaped the first time and it didn’t look to be a very fair fight. She leapt onto its back, holding tight as she wails her fists and her staff on the tops and sides of its big head.

She’s bounced around on its back, but is somehow able to hold on for a good while before she goes down. Hard. The beast collapsed sideways, and she had to dive out of the way to avoid being crushed by its weight. Mando’s arm is still stuck in its mouth.

“Rey!” He shouts, waving his hand frantically at her. “Go! Get out of the way!” She turns just in time to see a second creature running at her and she dives forward to try and evade its charge, landing near Mando. He pushes her behind his body as the beast comes up on them acting as a proper shield, but at the last minute it keels over as well, a tingling blue spark spreading over its scaly body.

Rey holds onto his outstretched arm as she peers out from behind his back curiously. “What are those things?”

And then another one shows up, but it was much more subdued. Probably because of the Ugnaught riding on its back. Mando’s arm prevents her from moving out from behind him still as he slowly assessed the man.

“Thank you.”

“You are a bounty hunter.” The small man states in response.

“Yes.” He slowly lowers his arm, apparently assessing he was there to cause no harm and allowing Rey to properly crawl out from behind him.

She locks eyes with the man on top of the creature. He stares at her for a couple moments before speaking again. “I will help you… I have spoken.”

And with that he guided the large beast to turn and walk away.

Rey decided that she liked him, and she jumped to her feet with a smile, ready to follow. She does her best to be polite and help Mando up from the muddy ground also, but she doesn’t think she’s doing much more than offering the pleasantry as the large man takes her hand politely and grunts in his effort to stand up. She puts all her strength into it, her bodyweight too… so she likes to think she at least helped him a little bit.

Either way, she’s pleased he’s alright and trails beside him as they follow the Ugnaught back to his camp.

~ Next Chapter ~

#the mandalorian #fanfiction #rey djarin #din djarin #dad!din #the mandalorian adopts rey #Rey Skywalker #rey of jakku #rey and mando #din is a softie at heart #paz viszla #paz is the cool uncle #the mandalorian fanfiction #platonic fanfiction

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shangyangjunzhu · 4 years

Text

Epiphanies

Okay so this is gonna be a long post...

Both Story of Yanxi Palace and Legend of Ruyi have some of the most complicated characters and such beautiful writing. Even some of the “villians” force me to sympathize and like them unlike Serenade of Peaceful Joy (internally screaming). Something I am seeing often is how Jin Yuyan (from Legend of Ruyi) and Hoifa-Nara Shushen (from Story of Yanxi Palace) change abruptly and that there is no proper explanation behind this character development. I’d like to play devil’s advocate and argue why it is infact excellent writing.

Okay starting off, Neither Yuyan nor Shushen really ever love their respective Qianlong. Yuyan’s only motivation to do anything is to win glory for her clan, which would obviously benefit her lover the Duke of Yu. Therefore, she doesn’t bat an eye when she goads Xiyue to kill the royal heirs or manipulate Ruiji to kill Langhua. She seduces Qianlong to give birth to more children which would solidify her standing in court. Her folly lies in believing that a woman of Korean descent would be allowed to be the Empress of a Manchu dynasty (sorry this isn’t the Yuan dynasty) even if she would eliminate Luyun (who is Han, which means that she can’t dream of this either) and Ruyi. If not Ruyi, Qianlong would probably have elevated Yihuan even if she had no kids just because she was Manchu. I am going off topic, so let’s go back. When she loses Qianlong’s favor, she also happens to lose Zhenshu, who kind of did most of the dirty work and kept Yuyan from going beserk. Losing her made her alone in the Qing court which meant that there was no one to tell Yuyan if what she was doing was too suspicious or do it covertly for her. Zhenshu was Yuyan’s only confidante who knew everything and I mean EVERYTHING. Lianxin is just a sidekick who is there for appearances. In addition, knowing that she couldn’t be an Empress at this point meant the only other option is for one of her sons to become the next Emperor. One of the biggest taboos for a Chinese emperor is the succession, especially after the Kangxi era (for further info watch Bu Bu Jing Xin). She didn’t realize that was the one thing she shouldn’t have messed with, which Zhenshu may have reminded her of. In my opinion, this is why she changes so abruptly and also falls from glory; not to forget, our lady Yanwan’s grudge. The only reason she decides to get into the succession battle is not even for her son’s future or her own prosperity but just so that Duke might benefit from it. It is so sad to see her break down when she realizes that she was merely a pawn the entire time and that she fought so viciously for a loser that abandoned her the moment she is of no use.

Coming to Shushen, her whole deal was to simply live her life peacefully. She cared for the Emperor as a wife would for her husband, but it was never really love. If anything, it was initially what Chinese culture demanded of a wife; respect, filial piety and the lack of jealousy. What really pushes her is that despite her not messing with anyone, everyone decides to mistreat her. Qianlong doesn’t care for her, Ningxin goes out of her way to make her life miserable and Jinghao keeps pushing her to be an ally of Rongyin. She decides that being above everyone is the only way to preserve her life and that of her father’s. Therefore, she ruthlessly gets rid of everyone in her path without even getting her hands dirty (She does it so well). As the Empress, she never gets jealous of anyone or their favor, rather it is when she is afraid that Yingluo might be capable of snatching her security and power (when she is given the right to carry out the silkworm ceremony) that she decides to wipe Yingluo out. Shushen’s facade is impeccable that it takes a very long time for Yingluo to realize what Shushen is capable of. Like Yingluo said, Shushen is the “most patient hunter she’s ever seen”. So why does Shushen really fail? Insecurities about her age and her son’s lack of talent is what really brings this about. She realizes that her time is ending and that Yingluo might be the one who gains the power after she is gone; the inability to be confident about her prowess is the root of it all. This is exactly why the ever-smart Shushen is able to be manipulated by Yuan Chunwang into making a fatal folly. One might think, how nice it would have been if she remained viciously smart? Fortunately or unfortunately, this is the beauty and ugliness of human nature. Insecurities can bring down the smartest and most cunning women. Yingluo doesn’t let these trivialities get the better of her while Shushen does.

Would I have liked to see this characters remain viley and successful? Yes. Was it a mistake on the part of the writers? No. They did a perfect job of depicting human imperfections.

#cdrama #ruyi's royal love in the palace #ruyi zhuan #legend of ruyi #story of yanxi palace #hoifa nara shushen #jin yuyan #random rants #ruyi meta #yanxi meta

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lgcmanager · 4 years

Photo

SEASON 001, PART 002

** please note that if anyone drops from here on, they will not be removed from the show, simply considered npc **

On NOVEMBER 18, contestants are brought back in the studio for the first time since the first day of filming. they are instructed to sit in their initial ranking chairs. shortly after everybody is seated, bae siwoo makes his entrance. just like on october 7, he takes the time to converse with the trainees a bit before cameras officially start rolling. this time, he is accompanied by the coaches who have been teaching and monitoring the progress of the trainees during the past weeks.

after a short introduction for the camera, he moves on to the reason why everybody is gathered here; solos and positions. “we will begin with the girls!” he announces. “the choice wasn’t easy and some of you have surprised us while others have disappointed us.” those heavy words are marked by a short pause. “before we continue, do you want to hear the song?” he waits for the trainees’ reply before cuing the music and revealing the GIRL’S SOLO. after the short 30 seconds snippet, siwoo speaks again; “let’s reveal our top 3 girls...” the face of JUNG MISO appears on a wide screen; “first; number 6, jung miso. our child actress chanel jung, who’s catched the attention with her strong expression and visuals. next...” the screen splits and appears HUANG XIYU “second; number 9, huang xiyu. also known as alice, she’s the strongest dancer in the group and shows versatility with talent in singing and rapping. and last but not least...“ a third face appears on the face with them; KANG JINA. “third is kang jina. the only third year trainee of the lot. she’s definitely one of our strongest singers on the girl’s side. so who gets it? let’s see the result.” he points to the screen again and after a short moment of suspense, jung miso and huang xiyu disappear, leaving only KANG JINA. “Congratulations to kang jina! kim youngim and the trainers have noted that your skills match the solo very well. you might find a bit of challenge in the rap part, but we’ll look forward to the result.”

he gives everyone a chance to react to the announcement before all attention turns to the male trainees. “and now for the boys! before i proceed with the results, let’s make you wait a little longer by presenting the song…” he smiles mysteriously and the studio falls silent except for the 30 second preview of the BOY’S SOLO. “who will be the top three contenders?” right as he pauses, everyone can see KANG JUN’s face appear on the screens. “first; number 9, kang jun! a young trainee no doubt, but still a well-rounded competitor with high skill in singing, dancing and rapping. next is…” siwoo begins, letting the trainees see KANG YONGHWA appear on the screen with kang jun. “number 7, kang yonghwa! he’s no doubt one of the strongest dancers in this competition, but has been able to impress with his singing and performing skills. and finally…” attention is brought to the screen again, and right in the middle appears AHN JAESUN. “number 2, ahn jaesun. he’s trained the longest among everyone here and has been able to show the trainers it wasn’t in vain. a charismatic performer indeed, skilled in both singing and dancing. and now...” while everyone expects siwoo to announce the winner, a fourth face appears on the screen, shocking everyone. it’s LEE JIHO. “yes, number 10, lee jiho. trainers were supposed to choose only three contenders, but this young trainee impressed a lot as both a singer and performer. not to be underestimated. sadly, there’s no one else! while you four impressed these past weeks, only one of you can get this solo. the winner is…” there’s a deafening silence during which all eyes are glued to the screen showing the three boys. and suddenly, ahn jaesun, lee jiho and kang jun disappear. “KANG YONGHWA! congratulations. the trainers thought your image and skills fit the concept of the song very well. they hope this vocal challenge will push your limits even further. work hard, and we’ll see the results very soon.”

“while those results might be heaven for some of you and hell for others, this is not over. in a short moment you will receive lyrics distributions for the songs you’ve been practicing until now. we will reveal right away some crucial positions and final lineup. for the boys. AHN JAESUN is named overall leader of the LEGACY BOYS and GEUM DANBI of LEGACY GIRLS. we will trust you with overseeing rehearsals and making sure every performance is up to standard. TSAI KING is named face and center of the LEGACY BOYS and HIT while YAMADA HIMEKO will be the same of LEGACY GIRLS and ADIOS. your position doesn’t end with a song; you will be front and center of promotion materials for the group. For HIT, JI HANEUL is the main vocal and AIKA WREN will have that position for ADIOS." the host then moves on to the other tracks. official groups go as follow;

MOVIE STAR

AHN JAESUN (Center and Leader)

PARK JACOB (Main Vocal)

PARK SEOJIN

TSAI KING

YOON DOWON

SIDE EFFECTS

AHN SEUNGMIN (Leader)

IM HYUNJIN (Main Vocal)

KANG YONGHWA

PARK DOHYUN (Center)

PARK VIGGO

BOOM

AHN DOHWAN (Leader)

CHOI JINYOUNG

JI HANEUL (Main Vocal)

KANG JUN

LEE JIHO (Center)

LATATA

GEUM DANBI (Leader)

JUNG MISO (Center)

LEE HARIN

PARK KYUNGA

RYU YERIN (Main Vocal)

SONG YEJIN

YAMADA HIMEKO

DALLA DALLA

AIKA WREN (Main Vocal)

BAE CHAEWON

HANG XIYU (Leader & Center)

KANG JINA

SONG AHYEON

due to the lineup changes and LINE DISTRIBUTION (BOYS & GIRLS) finally revealed, trainees are given the rest of the week to adjust. they will then head to the recording booth and film mvs for all songs. finally, on DECEMBER 22 the trainees will hold a mini concert in front of an audience of 750 people where they will perform all 7 songs. the songs will be released on DECEMBER 27 digitally and DECEMBER 30 physically. trainees will promote both main songs (HIT and ADIOS) on tv shows for a week and KANG JINA and KANG YONGHWA will each promote their respective songs the following week. we will reveal details concerning post future dreams promotions at a later date.

SCHEDULE

WEEK 1: PRACTICE

WEEK 2: RECORDING (boys from monday to thursday and girls from friday to sunday)

WEEK 3: RECORDING OF BEEP BEEP & BIRD + PRACTICE

WEEK 4: MV filming (one mv per day following this order; Hit, Adios, Movie Star, Latata, Side Effects, Dalla Dalla, Boom)

WEEK 5: Final rehearsals + Mv Filming for BEEP BEEP (Monday) and Bird (Tuesday)

DECEMBER 22: Concert @ 7PM

CONCERT SETLIST

MC 1 (Bae Siwoo)

Boom

Dalla Dalla

Side Effects

Merry & Happy (Trainee Girls)

MC 2 (Bae Siwoo)

Movie Star

Latata

Bird

Miracles In December (Trainee Boys)

MC 3 (Bae Siwoo)

BEEP BEEP

Adios

HIT

MC 4 (Bae Siwoo + All Future Dreams) - End

REQUIREMENTS

IMPORTANT: in order for your requirements to be valid, for each first post/solo posted, a READ MORE with a small INTERVIEW must be added. the interview can be just one question/answer, most likely about the thoughts or feelings of the trainee at that moment. For a thread, the interview section can also be done just once. This part has no minimum word requirement, but the number of words written in this part isn’t counted with the rest of your post (i.e; if you write a 300 words solo + 125 words for the interview, we only count 300 words). Make sure to usesthe hashtag lgc:futuredreams for everything related to this event.

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TITLE: MUSE NAME ∙ FUTURE DREAMS 001 PART 2

- PREPARATION PROCESS 2: +5 ( skill points distribution ) + 4 notoriety [ LINK ] - CONCERT: +5 ( skill points distribution ) + 5 notoriety [ LINK ]

#lgc:futuredreams #lgc:event #lgc:q42019

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cords-m3-eb-au · 2 years

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i mentioned changing names so here!!

aeolia is now Adyah, ionia is now Invicta, doria is now Oralee, phyrigia is now Pyxis, mixolydia is now Xiyue, lydia is now Cressidia, and fassad stays the same, but his name is also now Oriel. ***these are only changed in the wattpad version!! i’m keeping the original names in this one!! except for the halflights thing, that had to change idc lol.***

luke is now sunny, which is a nickname for apollo (yes i always shorten luke’s name, it feels like i’m yelling at him otherwise. using full names is only for when you’re mad at someone or want something comedic)

claus is arte, which is short for artemis (yes i know she’s a female goddess okay its a gender neutral name OKAY/lh)

duster is now barley, because that’s cute

kumatora is now victoria, because i like the fact that both can be shortened to “tori” which is what she’s primarily called

flint and hinawa are now rowan and calliope, both of which mainly because they are pretty names and i love them. good parents (for the most part.)

wess got changed to vernon, but only because it felt weird to change duster’s name but not his??

same thing with alec?? he’s called heath now

boney is also called scout, before i forget AGAIN

everyone else is going to be named the same, i think, unless i add onto this post with more changes.

also changing the names of the magical deities in this to “halflights” because their old name contains a whole ass slur?? hello?? what even was 2006 anyway- (they were called magypsies, and i just. don’t like that name lol. that word is actually a slur, and i guess no one noticed. whatever, different time, different headspace. we’re changing it now, and also ironing them out a bit in general because they can be a bit problematic at times, but i’m not here to touch on that.)

aeolia is now Adyah, ionia is now Invicta, doria is now Oralee, phyrigia is now Pyxis, mixolydia is now Xiyue, lydia is now Cressidia, and fassad stays the same, but his name is also now Oriel.

so yea if you see these names its bc i’m bad at editing and haven’t gotten to it yet so please have mercy

#anyways what the fuck #continuing on with this setting up the blog bullshit #its one in the morning #i'm listening to a ringtone on loop #im turning 18 next week what the fuck is wrong with me #gonna still be neurodivergent but no longer a minor

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highsomnia · 7 years

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I hope you mean XiYu platonically, the age diff might seem small but Xiyeon's still a minor

aspokdok yes of course. I love their dynamic and appreciate their love for one another, as with all the other pairings I talk about. I do not tolerate anyone being gross about any of them. They’re real people not characters.

#Anonymous

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guzhuangheaven · 4 years

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Eight maids with 心 (heart) in their names in Legend of Ruyi

Source

Prior to ascending the throne, Qianlong has eight wives, and each of them have a maid with the character xin 心 in her name. These names all foreshadow/reference the fates of their mistress in someway.

(Note: These names should not be understood as their birth/real names. Many servants have new names bestowed on them when they enter service, for a variety of reasons, including naming taboo, i.e. if their original name shares a character/sound with the names of their master/mistress/some other high rank person in the household. Sometimes their names can be changed just for convenience because rich people can’t be bothered to remember a variety of names of their servants. This is likely the case here, as all these maids in Hongli’s manor share a common character. Another reason is when Yuyan briefly changed Yanwan’s name to Qing’er, ostensibly because Yanwan is a bit of a tongue-twister.)

Lianxin 莲心 – Langhua’s maid

Lianxin is the centre (heart) of the lotus seed, which is extremely bitter. This reflects Langhua’s entire life trapped in a marriage with a husband who doesn’t love her and living a state of constant fear and paranoia. She also carries the burden of the honour and glory of her family, and never was able to live for herself. She always had to struggle to uphold the image of a virtuous wife and died in bitter pain and disappointment.

Moxin 茉心 - Xiyue’s maid

Mo refers to the jasmine flower. Lu Gu’s Records of Travel to the South writes, “the grains in the south are often tasteless and the flowers without fragrance, but only the jasmine does not change its nature with the terrain”. Xiyue is also similarly unchanging, always arrogant but also coquettish with Qianlong, which is the reason he favours her. Although throughout her life she acts in alliance with Langhua and Yuyan, she never counts herself among them in her heart and ultimately dies alone.

Suoxin 惢心 - Ruyi’s maid

Before Ruyi, 惢 was not a commonly used character and many people didn’t know how to pronounce it, so instead they called her “four hearts” because her entire name is made up of four 心 characters. The character 惢 has two meanings, one is kindness and one is doubt (the word for doubt/suspicion is also 多心 - many hearts). This describes Ruyi because she is essentially kind and does not want to make enemies with anyone. However, throughout the story, her motives are always under suspicion by many characters, e.g. the empress dowager, Langhua, etc. Though her love for Qianlong should not be doubted, in the end it was his doubts and suspicions that broke down their marriage and sealed her fate.

Yexin 叶心 - Hailan’s maid

Ye means leaf. While flowers are always the more dominant/noticeable part of a plant, a plant nevertheless cannot exist without leaves. Everything Hailan does is to help Ruyi or for Ruyi’s benefits, acting as the leaves to Ruyi’s flower. Regardless of what she herself is going through, Hailan is characterised by her relentless support for Ruyi, even when she fights for favour and in her relationship with her son.

Kexin 可心 - Luyun’s maid

Kexin means to be pleased, to have something according to your heart’s desire. Luyun’s defining characteristic is her candid artlessness and the fact that she isn’t capable of nefarious schemes. Her children are her heart’s greatest pleasure and everything she does is for their sake, even when she moved against Ruyi. But because she is also simple-minded that she is easily influenced, she also often acts according to the will/desire of those wanting to manipulate her.

Lixin 丽心 - Yuyan's maid

Li means beautiful, or to depend on. Yuyan is considered the most beautiful of Qianlong's concubines during the time he was a prince, and the reason she is so favoured also largely rests on her beauty. At the same time, her life depends on two men - the young master of her tribe who sent her to Da Qing, and Qianlong. In the end, her dependency on them is her downfall as both of them ended up foresaking her.

Huanxin 环心 - Huang Qiying’s maid

Huan refers to the links in a chain. Huang Qiying and her child are an important impetus to kickstarting the struggles between everyone in the harem. Their deaths also set in motion the conspiracy which ended up with Ruyi in the cold palace which changed the courses of both Ruyi and Hailan’s lives.

Shunxin 順心 - Chen Wanyin’s maid

Shunxin means to be satisfied. Wanyin never fought for favour. Instead she has always accepted her position as a low-ranked concubine. She is happy to just be able to be near Qianlong, never demanding his attention but just comforts herself with drawing his portrai over the years. She doesn’t have any enemies and not many friends in the palace, but this means that she is also at peace (shun) with everyone in the palace.

#legend of ruyi #如懿传 #cdrama #meta #ruyi meta #qing dynasty #language #lost in translation #gongdou meta

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foxghost · 3 years

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Joyful Reunion, Chapter 57

Translator: foxghost @foxghost tumblr/ko-fi1 Beta: meet-me-in-oblivion @meet-me-in-oblivion tumblr Original by 非天夜翔 Fei Tian Ye Xiang Masterpost | Characters, Maps & Other Reference Index

Book 2, Chapter 14 (Part 2)

They return to the courtyard house.

“Did you think we’re going on a leisure trip?” Wu Du says to him, frowning.

“I want to stay with you.” Duan Ling says without missing a beat, “If it’s not at your side, I’m not going anywhere.”

One sentence and Duan Ling has left Wu Du speechless. Next thing he’s covering his forehead with a hand and waving the other as he heads inside without a word.

Duan Ling stares at Wu Du’s back with a curious look on his face. Wu Du doesn’t even know what to say to him anymore.

“Don’t you want to get ahead?” Wu Du sounds dumbfounded. “You have such a good opportunity being a study partner for the young master, and instead of treasuring that, you‘re choosing to run off to Tongguan at a time like this. Whatever are you trying to do?”

“I … This is one way a person can get ahead, you know.”

Wu Du keeps getting the feeling that Duan Ling is keeping something from him, and now sitting in the room he considers Duan Ling with a puzzled look as though there’s something unusual surging just beneath the surface, the shape of it barely discernible, as if there’s a layer of chiffon in the way.

“What on earth are you hiding from me?” Wu Du asks.

All this time, he’s had this feeling that something isn’t right, but he can’t quite put his finger on it. This is the closest he’s ever been to the truth.

In that precise moment, Duan Ling has a sudden impulse to say it, and very nearly blurts it out.

“I want to go find my dad.” In the end that’s the excuse Duan Ling uses.

Wu Du gets it then. The tight furrow between his brows relaxing a smidgen as he gives Duan Ling a nod.

“The last time I saw him was outside Tongguan. Even though I don’t think I can find him anymore … I still want to at least try looking.”

“Then when we’re out you have to listen to me. You cannot act on your own.”

Duan Ling nods, agreeing, and that seems to calm Wu Du. He tells Duan Ling, “Go pack for our trip.”

Duan Ling starts packing their rudimentary luggage while thinking to himself that he’s dodged another arrow again. As soon as he gets away from here, then it’s the literal meaning of the common saying: the sky is high and the emperor lives far away;2 no matter how much Lang Junxia may want to kill him he won’t be able to find him. As for what happens when he gets back, well, that’s something to worry about for later.

But Wu Du is staring at Duan Ling as he packs, not taking his eyes off of him. Suddenly, he says, “But no matter what you end up finding, you mustn’t try to kill yourself again, got it?”

Duan Ling turns around, smiling at Wu Du. “I won’t do that again. With you around, I’ll definitely stay alive.”

Under Duan Ling’s care, amidst the courtyard house’s garden, many splendid flowers are blooming brilliantly, a backdrop as colourful as a painting; the picture of a young man turning with a smile on his face has startled Wu Du out of the blue without rhyme or reason at all.

In the afternoon, more gifts arrive. This time it’s clothes for the trip made with first-rate fabric, as well as money they’ll need for spending on the road; there’s even a dagger for Duan Ling for self-defence.

When it’s night time, Wu Du and Duan Ling plan out their itinerary. This is the first time Duan Ling has ever formally embarked on a long journey, so he’s actually rather excited.

“Make sure you don’t talk too much while we’re out. If nothing goes wrong I’ll disguise myself as your servant. A young master doesn’t need to do everything himself.”

Duan Ling just nods, and in the end he asks, “What’s the Zhenshanhe?”

This is clearly a question he knows the answer to; as soon as he heard that the sword of the realm had gone missing, he knew that the sword had been gone since the day Shangjing fell. If they can recover the Zhenshanhe, does that mean they can direct the four assassins?

“A weapon that stabilises the empire. The crown prince is looking for it as well.”

“Is it in Bian Lingbai’s keeping?” Duan Ling asks.

“Not necessarily. But he was among the last of the reinforcements to arrive in Shangjing.”

Duan Ling suspects that it is more likely to have fallen into Mongol or Khitan hands, but since its whereabouts are unknown, they may as well see if they can find it while they’re there.

They discuss for a time in the evening, and as they’re about to go to bed, Mu Kuangda summons them to a meeting. When they get to the study it is a private meeting as before, and Mu Kuangda hands the two their mission.

“Chang Pin is in Jiangzhou, so it’s too late to ask him for a plan. I improvised something with what little time I have, and I’m not sure if it’s entirely advisable; he’s usually the one who’d come up with ideas for something like this. We’ll talk about it together, and if anything feels amiss, either of you can tell me.”

Then Mu Kuangda explains to Duan Ling and Wu Du that the general plan is nothing more than to first win Bian Lingbai’s trust by passing Duan Ling off as Zhao Kui’s nephew. He’ll express his wish to convene Zhao Kui’s former subordinates, to claim some territory and set himself up as a local lord so he can take revenge for his uncle. This way, Wu Du won’t have to put on a disguise, making it less likely to give the game away.

As for Duan Ling, his mission is to gain Bian Lingbai’s trust first, then probe for information, try to find some way to steal some correspondence between Bian Lingbai and Xiliang. On the one hand the letters can act as evidence that they can present to the emperor after they kill Bian Lingbai, and on the other hand, Mu Kuangda needs to know what Bian Lingbai is planning.

After all, there are many beneficial relationships between the Tangut tribe and the empire of Chen. Xiliang used to be an independent state, then it was annexed by Liao, and its allegiance has always wavered between Liao and Chen. If all goes as planned, Mu Kuangda intends to find some way to gain Xiliang’s support.

There are factions within Xiliang as well; ever since Helian Bo and his mother returned to their homeland, their government has been split into two factions, one advocating the Helian family leaving Liao control and gaining independence, while another believes it is best for them to bide their time.

All of this is giving Duan Ling a bit of a headache. He had recommended himself3 in order to survive, but now that he thinks about it, he’s going to have to install himself with a general he’s never met, and it’s one at the commander-in-chief level too — it won’t be easy to fool him. While he hasn’t been found out at the Mu estate, he’s never had to explain his origins in front of Mu Kuangda, and the identity he made up has been quite limited. In front of Bian Lingbai he’ll have to fabricate an entire set of lies. What he has done so far cannot hold a candle to what he must do on this trip.

“I just worry that I won’t be able to gain his trust and things will easily go wrong,” Duan Ling says.

“That doesn’t matter.” Mu Kuangda smiles, looking fully like a cunning old fox. “We have something in exchange that will give him no other option but to meet with you.”

Speaking, he hands over a tiny wooden box. Duan Ling opens it to find a rolled up silk tapestry, yellowed with age and drawn with mountains, rivers, and general terrain.

Duan Ling stares at it in amazement.

Mu Kuangda says, “This is a treasure map taken from Zhao Kui’s storage when his property was confiscated by the government.”

Duan Ling is staring with his mouth agape at the treasure map. It’s thin as a cicada’s wing, every last line distinct.

“Bian Lingbai has been hankering after it for a long time, but he’s been unable to find it through all his searching after Zhao Kui’s properties were confiscated; even His Majesty himself knows not of its whereabouts. I had foreseen the need for this plan a long time ago, and thus I have been hiding it. And I also have a letter forged in Zhao Kui’s handwriting ostensibly written prior to his death that you can take with you.”

Duan Ling looks over the treasure map carefully. “What’s buried here?”

“Gold, silver, treasure — enough money to rival the imperial treasury.” Mu Kuangda drinks his tea without any sign of nervousness. “Presumably Zhao Kui made contingency plans while he was planning his coup, and if the coup failed he would have unearthed the treasure and ran away, find some small place in Xiyu where he could keep a private army of a hundred thousand or so, and became the ruler of a small state. It would have made an acceptable living.”

Duan Ling has no more misgivings, and he puts the treasure map away. Mu Kuangda then warns him once more, “Of course, Bian Lingbai isn’t going to trust you. And with just yourself you’re not going to be able to get to the core of his secrets; he’s tremendously ambitious. However, with these terms on your side, it won’t be hard for you to infiltrate his army along with Wu Du.”

In an instant, Duan Ling comprehends his intentions; neither his identity nor the treasure map are significant at all. All he has to do is to buy time for Wu Du.

“I understand. I definitely won’t fail.”

Satisfied, Mu Kuangda nods. “Then, Wu Du, you’ll have to act as our gentleman thief.”

“I got it,” Wu Du replies.

“First, steal the classified information. If it’s possible, steal both his ledgers and letters. As for the value of each piece of information, you two must figure it out amongst yourselves what to take and what mustn’t be touched. Get rid of him before you leave. Only once we have evidence can we arrange negotiations with Xiliang. Bian Lingbai has always wanted to turn against the central government, and after Zhao Ku died no one could keep him in check. The longer we allow him to live the more things can go awry. We must resolve this as soon as possible.”

Wu Du gives him a nod, knowing that once he finishes this job Mu Kuangda definitely won’t treat him lightly, which precisely fulfils the way to “get ahead” that Duan Ling mentioned. But getting ahead isn’t going to be easy; this is the first assassination he has been tasked with since he came under Mu Kuangda’s patronage, and it is also a blood pledge — but he has already run out of other options.4

“What if he’s innocent?” Duan Ling asks suddenly .

A look of alarm flashes across Wu Du’s face.

Mu Kuangda though, has started smiling, staring right at Duan Ling.

Duan Ling knows full well that this is the one question he should never ask, but he asked it anyway.

“Very good.” Mu Kuangda nods slowly. “If he’s innocent, will you or will you not kill him?”

To his surprise, Mu Kuangda has kicked the ball right back into Duan Ling’s court, with a shrewd, calculating look in his eyes.

Duan Ling takes a deep breath, about to answer, but then Mu Kuangda is telling him, full of poise, “If he’s innocent, then you may do as you see fit.”

“Certainly,” Duan Ling feels a great weight coming off his chest.

Mu Kuangda does not move his eyes from Duan Ling, as though he wants to see right through into his heart.

“Come back as soon as possible,” Mu Kuangda adds, “The exams will happen right after the capital is relocated. You mustn’t neglect your studies.”

Duan Ling rises with Wu Du, and they take their leave.

On the way back, the more Duan Ling thinks about the meeting the more he appreciates Mu Kuangda’s meticulous planning, how he has taken every possibility into account. At the end of it he even emphasised several times that they must create the illusion that Bian Lingbai passed away from natural causes. For that is the only way the imperial court can assign a general to take over the army stationed beneath Tongguan, stopping the chance of further turmoil.

“Even if he is innocent we’ll still have to kill him,” Wu Du says quietly.

“I know. But you won’t, will you? I won’t either. There aren’t that many generals who’re capable of safeguarding the border. As long as he doesn’t turn against the empire, then he should not be killed indiscriminately.”

At the end of which he closes the gates of the courtyard house behind him, and once they’re back inside the house, he says to Wu Du in a barely audible whisper, “I only said that to give him pause. And if we don’t find anything, then you don’t have to make this blood pledge anymore. Killing good and loyal men is going to end up costing no one but you in the end.”

With a deep furrow between his brows, Wu Du turns his gaze onto Duan Ling, and it just so happens that Duan Ling was also watching him. There is a shared understanding in their gaze that cannot be put into words.

“Get some sleep.” Wu Du says, “We’ll have to be on our way in the morning. Don’t think about this anymore.”

Duan Ling goes to his floor bedding, but that’s when Wu Du says to him, “Come sleep on my bed. It’s been raining for days. The floor’s too damp.”

Duan Ling doesn’t bother being polite either, and just climbs up to the bed to sleep, while Wu Du sits in front of the desk, looking at the treasure map by the dim light of a lantern.

Half way through the night Duan Ling wakes up once and says to Wu Du, “Not going to sleep yet?”

Wu Du hums something in reply. He has the treasure map pinched between two fingers, and turning the silk tapestry backwards and forwards, he looks at it through the lamplight. It’s quite a while before he gets on the bed with all his clothes on, lying down next to Duan Ling, and gets under the same covers.

Duan Ling is all muddled in his sleep. Turning over, he throws a leg over Wu Du’s waist and clasps his arms around him, and subconsciously lean against him, putting his head on Wu Du’s arm, wrapping nearly his entire body around Wu Du.

Wu Du is at quite a loss; he can’t exactly push him away, and it’s even weirder if he holds onto him. Being embraced by a young man this way gives him a peculiar feeling, and he’s all at once frozen in place.

I do not monetise my hobby translations, but if you’d like to support my work generally or support my light novel habit, you can either buy me a coffee or commission me. This is also to note that if you see this message anywhere else than on tumblr, do come to my tumblr. It’s ad-free. ↩︎

The sky is high and the emperor is far away is a common saying, as in “far away from the central government, the local magistrates can embezzle as they like” basically. ↩︎

The idiom for recommending oneself for a job is “Mao Sui recommends himself”. It has a wikipedia entry if you’re interested in history. ↩︎

The words for a blood pledge is more like a “contract”, but it means an act that ensures your loyalty. It originates in Water Margin, where Lin Chong was asked to kill someone and bring back their head in order to join the gang on Mount Liang. I translate this generally to blood pledge, since it is a pledge in which you get blood on your hands. ↩︎

#相見歡 #fei tian ye xiang #joyful reunion #xiang jian huan #fox translates things

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