#are things jgy could never have access to

[criticalrolo]

i INSTANTLY need to know more about cormorant da-ge

im sticking nie mingjue in a house by the river run by two lesbians with their younger siblings so he can make friends with some birds and be wildly overprotective of the kids to his hearts content

anyway here's what's going on to get NMJ sent to the seaside for his health like a jane austen character

JGS is making noises about how much more convenient his life would be if someone would Rid Him Of This Turbulent Sect Leader, Henry II style, and JGY has the idea to try out this cool new composition called the Song of Turmoil

Except he's never tried to kill someone with the Song of Turmoil before, and apparently those songs are powerful enough to kill people within three notes if played by a master! and this is a Modified Version that could conceivably do... Anything

So the first time he decides to try out the song. well. instead of a slow poison he's got a half-dead da-ge spitting blood on the floor 50% of the way into a qi deviation

PANIC. drag his sworn brother to the Koi Tower Basement to see if your half-baked stygian tiger amulet can do anything

the song is still in NMJ's head causing problems so he works out a plan with XY to try to just. erase the song and the memory of that afternoon. see if that does the trick

NMJ wakes up and says what the fuck. where am i. who are you

FUCK SHIT FUCK okay. we're going into crisis mode since we obviously can't send an amnesiac da-ge back to Qinghe when we were SUPPOSED to be doing medical care

Xue Yang go dump this guy in a river to get him as far away from here as possible while JGY does some DAMAGE control to make it look like NMJ left Lanling like expected and possibly disappeared on the way back home

1 terrible trip down the river later, local Yunping fisherman's cormorants find a body in the weeds. he fishes the biggest dude he's ever seen out of the water and OOPS this guy is still alive!! good thing his sister's "very good friend who shares a room with her and is raising a child with her" is the town's doctor!

Cue frantic life saving scene where eventually This Guy wakes up and tells them he doesn't remember anything about himself or his life. oh no he must have fallen off a boat somewhere and hit his head really hard :(

Doesn't even know his own name. He's pretty sure he can remember being called Da-ge by someone though

They'd feel bad if they just set this guy wandering off with literally Nothing to go on in the world. plus he can reach the top shelves in their house without having to get a chair

He can stay with them if he helps with the farm animals, learns how to fish, and helps out the family business. And even though his meridians are all fucked up he's got a little bit of cultivation ability so he can help their daughter build up her golden core. He's pretty good at this training thing!

They've got nine cormorants named after the Nine Sons of the Dragon. Baxia the cormorant is fucking obsessed with Da-ge for whatever reason

Domestic life continues with Da-ge out on a boat during the day and helping the cultivators out with developing their golden cores, training they normally wouldn't really have access to

One day the doctor says her cousin is coming to visit! she hasn't seen her since the end of the Sunshot campaign and she's excited to reconnect with her. oh look here she comes!! hi luo quinyang it's been forever since we've seen you!!

POV: you are Mianmian, you left the cultivation world a year ago and you're traveling around as a rogue cultivator now. You visit your cousin. Fucking Chifeng-Zun is in her front yard. He's been presumed dead for the last year. what the actual fuck do you do

meanwhile JGY is desperately trying to convince NHS back in Qinghe to accept that his brother is dead for his own sake <3 for his own closure so he can lead the sect in his brother's memory <3 please god stop looking into this <3

NHS: "haha yeah you're probably right sang-ge. anyway im going to go look into all of our historical records to see how i can get access to Dead People's Spirits to Find Their Bodies and maybe this will lead to me bringing my dead necromancer friend back from the dead. xoxo"

anyway eventually they reunite and it's a whole debacle. this is actually a v long way for me to make NMJ and mianmian accidental friends because I think it would be funny

#this au is parallel to the au in my head where the Mamas Nie disappeared because. they time traveled by accident. dont worry about it #things that can heal qi deviations: hanging out with cooler lesbians and being friends with birds #making more lesbian friends certainly fixed a lot of MY spiritual cognition. ANYWAY #nie mingjue #jin guangyao #nie huaisang #mianmian #mdzs #cormorant fishing au

[stiricidewrites]

All the Things We’ll Leave Behind: ch 28, pt 18

See you Saturday!

Previously

~

He reached to grab lwj’s phone as well, plugged in to charge next to his own—not that lwj had plugged it in. When they’d returned after their second trip, jzxuan had noticed it, sitting dead next to his own and plugged it in as well, shaking his head at his friend. He’d asked lwj if he’d even checked it when he’d gotten it back, and the other alpha had simply shrugged and said the bunnies were more important.

Now, jzxuan held the power button for each in turn, watching the phones’ logos light up across the screens. After a few moments, they both flashed to life and—

“Fuck,” he muttered as they both lit up with a ridiculously large number of missed notifications.

He unlocked his own phone, glancing up and wondering if he should let lwj know his phone was on, only to find the man had disappeared, and was no longer kneeling amongst the rabbits. Great. At least he hadn’t heard the front door, a surprisingly noisy thing that creaked every time someone blew on it, so he assumed his friend was still in the house somewhere.

He flipped through his own phone. He’d missed a handful of calls and texts from both his brother and wwx, as well as a call from lxc—who had even left a voicemail. There was another call from the temporary phone his younger brother had access to on his vacation, although jzxuan had received calls from both mxy and nhs on it. His brother had left his own phone behind, as it had been compromised by someone—they still weren’t exactly sure by whom—before he left. He and jgy had been worried it could be used to track their little brother and his friend, and had forced them to leave it behind, even if mxy had complained about how he had “important things” on it, whatever that meant. jzxuan wasn’t sure where that phone was now, although his brother had said he’d taken care of it, which he was taking to mean if anyone did try to stalk their baby brother with it, they would be regretting it very, very quickly.

Most of the recent calls were from wwx. Several after lwj had hung up on him—then turned jzxuan’s phone off—followed by a huge break, which... weird. The calls had restarted several hours ago, probably around the time that lwj had disappeared into the woods.

The last call had only been a few minutes ago, the previous ones coming in almost exactly 15 minute intervals for… almost three hours. A call from jyl almost an hour ago, and another from his brother a little before that, broke the continuous stream of missed calls from the obviously worried alpha, but otherwise it was just call, after call, after call from the older man. Not that jzxuan could blame him. If one of his friends or brothers were drunk and angry and missing… well, he’d just spent the entire night stalking after lwj, so he knew full well he’d do pretty much anything. He wondered if wwx would show up again, looking for his missing mate. He’d just been here, and seemed to have left in a hurry, already having evaded work for too long, so perhaps not. You never knew, though, and jzxuan’s heart ached at bit at the idea of the older man showing up, yet again, because his mate was distressed. It was sweet, and fuck, did he want something like that for himself.

#fanfic #mdzs fanfiction #wangxian #stiricidesbottomji #omegaverse

[cqlfeels]

nmj for the character meme please!

Sure! NMJ my beloved! <3

Sexuality Headcanon: Sigh. That's complicated. Uninterested in women, but his interest for men aligns perfectly with historical practice for men of his social position and would register to him and everyone else as more homosocial than homosexual. I have literally no idea how he would identify in a modern au

Gender Headcanon: Cismale, although I think a lot of fun can be had with the concept of transmasc NMJ. I haven't explored that much, but it could be fascinating

A ship I have with said character: LXC and/or JGY. That's it. Short list. But notice I am interested exclusively in messed up relationships for nielan, nieyao or 3zun (and xiyao for that matter) - I lose interest if I'm not alarmed by whatever is going on with them. Oh, and I could see NMJ/JC but it'd take a lot of work to make it believable for my undestanding of their characters, so I tend to prefer NMJ&JC

A BROTP I have with said character: Same as above. NHS. And, as I've mentioned, controversially, JC!!! NMJ&JC is a concept I love and rarely see!!! Come on, fandom, let's make it a thing!!!!

A NOTP I have with said character: Uh, probably anything I don't actively ship?

A random headcanon: His thing where he is uninterested in all kinds of entertainments is a coping mechanism. Why enjoy life when you're going to lose it very soon? Better to focus all your energy on fulfilling your duties and then you won't regret having wasted your limited time.

General Opinion over said character: I don't vibe with either NMJ Has Never Done Anything Wrong or NMJ Totally Had It Coming takes. So that already limits a lot of the NMJ content I have access to. But all the same, I'm always actively looking for good NMJ things to reblog because I adore him! And the sections in the novel that have him are some of the passages I have re-read the most, I believe!

#ask game

[robininthelabyrinth]

JGY bonding with Baxia over their shared appreciation for murder - 🌻🐢🐅

kitten thinks of murder all day (JGY & Baxia) - ao3

Jin Guangyao had had plans.

In all fairness, he didn’t really think that the stupid array would work. He’d believed that he was wise in the ways of cultivation, able to tell what was real and what was false, and an array that supposedly could swap souls between bodies…that was ridiculous, wasn’t it? Utterly absurd. He’d found it in Wen Ruohan’s library, and even that madman of a tyrant had laughed upon seeing it, shaking his head.

At the time, Jin Guangyao had thought it was because it was a joke, but later it had occurred to him that Wen Ruohan did not have a sense of humor, having excised it along with most of his sanity well before he’d ever met him; as a result, he’d decided there was no harm in giving it a try. After all, the alternative was going to be having to execute his father’s order to get rid of Nie Mingjue – he had a plan for that, too, and it was sinister even by his usual standards, an exploitation of his sworn brother’s well-known familial weakness…still, it was such a waste.

Might as well have a little fun first, right?

So he’d tried it out, and it had worked. He’d woken up dizzy, having fallen on the floor when the array activated, but he’d woken up in Nie Mingjue’s body. Nie Mingjue himself, in Jin Guangyao’s body, was still unconscious, having not had the benefit of preparation the way Jin Guangyao had; he was fundamentally fine, being tended to by the doctors, and Jin Guangyao had every intention of exploiting both the initial time before he awoke and, later, for as long as it took them to switch back. Nie Mingjue wouldn’t want to reveal weakness, and that meant Jin Guangyao would have to act for some period of time as Sect Leader Nie – the things he could get his hands on with that type of access…!

He’d had plans.

Those plans had lasted…not especially long, on account of something very large uncurling in the back of his mind and saying in a thunderous clash of screaming metal: You are not my master.

What, Jin Guangyao thought, meaning - what the fuck is that.

I am Baxia.

Well shit, Jin Guangyao thought next. He hadn’t anticipated that.

This was going to put a serious crimp in his plans to murder a whole lot of people.

No, hold on, back up, Baxia said, voice heavy and ponderous and inhuman. Let us not be too hasty here. Can I add people to the list?

…what?

I want to murder some people too.

Jin Guangyao was momentarily speechless. Aren’t you a saber?

I’m not allowed to go killing anyone I like, Baxia said, and if it was possible for an inhuman screech of metal to sound like it was sulking, Baxia was doing its best approximation of that at the moment. It’s not ‘appropriately in line with morality and ethics’.

Jin Guangyao…felt a very odd sort of sympathy. You got that lecture too?

Hah! You think he came up with it for your sake, human brother? I’ve been hearing it for years!

Come to think of it, Nie Mingjue’s scolding had sounded a bit practiced.

Why can’t I kill some people? Baxia complained. I’m meant to fight evil, right? People are evil. They’re also in my way, and I hate that.

Another pang of sympathy. Maybe even empathy.

He must be going mad, Jin Guangyao decided. The disadvantage of temporarily shifting into the body of someone with a tendency towards qi deviations and insanity, no doubt. Otherwise, why would he be feeling kinship with a saber?

With Nie Mingjue’s saber, no less!

He’d just been planning on killing the man!

No, no, you can’t kill my master, that would be awful. He’s really quite all right once you figure out how he works, Baxia said.

I have tried, Jin Guangyao protested, feeling oddly insulted. You have no idea how much I’ve tried! Back when I was his deputy, there wasn’t a single vice I didn’t try to throw his way, and he didn’t bite on any of them. And after things fell apart between us, it only got worse – he swore brotherhood with me, but he never has a kind word to say!

That’s because you’re approaching it all wrong, Baxia said. He’s not the sort that you can manipulate with his vices. You have to attack his virtues, instead.

…what?

Do you think he loves little Huaisang?

Of course.

And how does he treat him? Kind words?

Jin Guangyao snorted. Nie Mingjue scolded no one in the world more than his much-beloved half-brother.

Then he frowned.

Are you suggesting that he’s trying to treat me like a brother by…yelling at me?

His frown deepened.

Even if he is, how does that help me? He still doesn’t trust me, and I can’t manipulate him – uh, that is –

Say what you mean, Baxia ordered. There’s no point in being circuitous in here, I can hear everything you think. Anyway, you’re still thinking the wrong way. You don’t need him to stop yelling at you, that’s impossible – take it from one who knows. No, what you really want is just for him to let you kill people, right?

…well…

There’s a trick for that.

Jin Guangyao’s interest was piqued. I’m listening.

All right. This is how you do it: ask.

What?

Ask.

That’s ridiculous!

Is it?

Yes! He would never stand for me slaughtering a path through my enemies, especially not if I told him about it in advance – even if I tried to play it off as if they’d done something to me first, made it fit inside the accepted narrative of revenge, he’d only question my motives and think I was up to something…

It’s like you’re deaf, Baxia said. Did I say play? I said ask. Just tell him you want to murder them, then let him figure out what to do with it.

That won’t work!

Which of us has managed to convince him to murder people again?

You’re his saber. I’m just –

His sworn brother.

Hmm. No, what was he thinking? It was completely impossible. Ridiculous. There was no way that Nie Mingjue would wrack his brain to find a way to justify letting him murder someone just because he said he wanted to; no one was that indulgent, not even of their relatives...

Hmm.

…would that actually work? he asked.

Completely. Now, come on, he’s asleep right now, right? We can definitely pretend there was some psychosis involved in the array, or that I took the opportunity to take over or something like that. Let’s go kill the most unreachable person you can think of!

Presumably someone evil?

I’m not picky, Baxia said. You’re all evil in some way, you humans. How about your father? He’s pretty awful.

I’m not about to kill my father!

Would it make you feel better if I killed him…?

No!

But he’s awful! And you’ll never get another chance as good as this one!

If I want to kill him later, I have ideas for that.

Hmm, Baxia said, reading them. Elaborate, shameful, I like it. But then you’d have to kill the whores, wouldn’t you? You’d feel bad about that.

I would not. How dare you.

You would too. You humans are all like that. It’ll be ‘oh it’s just some whores, no one will care’ at the start and then suddenly it’s ‘well this one reminds me of someone I know’ or ‘she said she has a child’ and next thing you know you’re making excuses and trying to preserve life…hypocrisy, hypocrisy, hypocrisy. Kill them all!

Jin Guangyao had a brief and highly unsettling moment where he felt vaguely bad for Nie Mingjue. No wonder none of his temptations had ever worked on him, if he was used to a constant murderous presence in the back of his mind…

Come oooooon, little human! The more you drag your feet the fewer people we can plausibly slaughter while 'temporarily mad'. Let’s do this thing!

We are not going to – wait, I sound like da-ge. Okay, new plan: let’s go murder people.

Jin Guangyao had had plans.

He had new plans, now.

For some reason, he thought it would work out all right.

#mdzs #jin guangyao #meng yao #baxia #my fic #my fics

[winepresswrath]

Hello, can I ask something? I’d like to know your opinion on this. I’ve heard it said that WWX is the type to internalize blame, and JC is the opposite. Would you say there are parallels between JC and JGY with their whole “nothing is ever my fault I was pushed into this I have no choice” attitude towards taking responsibility for their messes?

Kind of? I think they’re both pragmatists in ways that ironically sometimes blind them to their available options, but they’re pursuing different goals and have pretty distinct motives so it’s kind of polo balls and oranges. Jin Guangyao is constantly doing stuff he knows his society would condemn him for in the pursuit of survival and personal power. Insofar as he's invested in his sect it's as a means to becoming the person he wants to be- someone who can fulfill his promise to his mother, secure enough power to protect himself and advance his personal agendas, and satisfy some lingering daddy issues.

He's perfectly willing to abandon his sect in disgrace if it keeps him alive and in the game. I have no doubt that he's an extremely competent and effective administrator who advanced the Jin's interests and probably also the common good, but he also kidnaps his own juniors and ties them up on zombie mountain as bait so he can more effectively murder his political enemies. He does things like murdering his own father, (totally deserved but also a massive social taboo) while genuinely wanting Xichen, Qin Su, and to some extent Mingjue's approval and validation. What I’m getting at is that when Jin Guangyao is trying to explain his choices he's not just trying to create an internal image of himself that feels consistent with his own values, he's trying to reconcile the person he feels he has to be with a person these people could not only love but respect and support. That's why he sets himself up for such an own goal with "Rusong had to die." He could have sworn up and down that he would never! He doesn't because he wants Qin Su to agree with him that it was necessary.

Jiang Cheng is not doing any of that. He's in it for his sect and his family, and while he cares tremendously about public opinion his primary concern is pragmatic. He wants to avoid being perceived as an easy mark and he wants to avoid angry mobs aimed and him and his. He's insecure and prideful, but he's not invested in trying to explain or justify himself. When it’s his turn to monologue at the temple he has a lot to say about his feelings, but he’s not asking for other people to understand him; he’s both lashing out in a fairly raw and aimless way and trying to understand both himself and Wei Wuxian ("Why didn’t you tell me? Why can’t I hate you?"). He lets everyone at the temple walk away knowing that Wei Wuxian gave him his core but not how he lost his own core in the first place. He clearly still cares about Wei Wuxian, but he’s not capable of asking for forgiveness or understanding.

Jiang Cheng is also just playing with a different hand than Jin Guangyao from the beginning. The part of the story where he has the least power and the most need to claw his way to a seat at the table is elided in a sentence and presented as pretty straightforwardly heroic

the most laughable one was the Yunmeng Jiang Sect, the people of which either had been killed or had scattered, leaving only Jiang Cheng, who was younger than even Lan XiChen and was still a child born yesterday, who had nobody in his hands but still dared call himself sect leader, holding up the banner of rebellion as he recruited new disciples.

This kind of brings me to- what do we mean by messes? Jin Guangyao isn’t justifying “mess,” he’s justifying murder, which is just killing someone outside the boundaries of the law. As the son of a sex worker, the means Jin Guangyao uses to access power are broadly perceived as illegitimate by both assholes who think he needs to know his place and perfectly nice people who think even if the deck is stacked against you and it’s the only way to advance you shouldn’t murder innocent people for your own benefit. And also you shouldn’t murder people for opposing you politically, or because you wanted a side of poetic justice with your patricide. He is acting transgressively, lying about it, and then explaining himself after the fact.

Jiang Cheng doesn’t have these problems. There’s not a lot of political worldbuilding in CQL or MDZS but it’s pretty clear that as the displaced heir of his clan he had the right to pursue leadership. Arguably, it’s what he owes his murdered family. The violence he uses to achieve that goal is both socially permissible and celebrated. He's also, unlike Jin Guangyao, not all that invested in his personal survival. He gives himself up for Wei Wuxian and tries to trade places with Jin Ling because his own life is not the most important thing to him- it's his sect and his family. He doesn’t have to justify these priorities because they’re pretty in line with general social mores, overinvestment in a sister’s son and the son of a servant aside. Even when he’s doing things I’d argue he believes are wrong, or at least morally complicated (failing to help the Wen) he’s got Mingjue speaking up in his capacity as most righteous dude in the room to say it’s impossible for him to owe a debt to people whose family have wronged his to the extent that the Wens did. His bad behaviour is socially permissible. When he tells Wei Wuxian there’s no choice, he’s not actually trying to get Wei Wuxian to agree that he’s doing the right thing, he’s is trying to convince Wei Wuxian that his cause is futile and he should save himself.

I do think there’s some kind of vicious weasel cycle going around Jiang Cheng’s head where he spends a significant chunk of time unable to decide if various disasters were Wei Wuxian’s fault for betraying them/losing control/acting carelessly out of a lack of affection or his fault for loving and trusting Wei Wuxian enough to put him in a position to do any of those things and then spinning out into “maybe it was all a big misunderstanding somehow no that’s the stupid childish logic that got us here” but frankly Jiang Cheng logic does not deserve to be dignified with a response. If what he was after was evading responsibility he could have simply been blaming one of the many, many other people at fault the whole time. Seriously, he doesn’t have to blame Wei Wuxian to avoid blaming himself when Wen Chao is right there. Out of the many and varied tragedies that have defined Jiang Cheng’s life the mess that is his adult relationship with Wei Wuxian is the one he’s actually at fault in, and since Wei Wuxian is alive and happy that’s actually his best and least tragic problem. I got sidetracked but basically Jin Guangyao is seeking validation from a place of social marginalization and mass murder. Jiang Cheng does all of his atrocities in public and is both incapable of processing trauma in a healthy way and too emotionally damaged to seek personal validation from the people he loves. One of them is playing polo and the other one is eating an orange. They are not the same although a round object is involved in both cases.

#jin guangyao #jiang cheng #like does jiang cheng blame wei wuxian for a bunch of shit that isn't his fault or his not entirely his fault #yes #is this a fun and cathartic experience for him #idk the book says “It was this torturing thought that filled his heart with hatred and wrath. Unable to be let out they cut up his innards #and he's ugly sobbing his way through it in the show it certainly feels to me like the idea wwx is in some way responsible for the #destruction of their family is pretty unpleasant for him #which doesn't mean he's right! or you have to find it sympathetic #but like. it's not for his own benefit #he is upset by this theory yet also compelled by it #why could this be #maybe an adult in a position of authority spent his whole life implying that his father loving wei wuxian was a dereliction of duty #openly resented both his and his sister's closeness with him #argued he was always going to bring trouble down on their heads #and then specifically said it was all his fault right before she died #just as a starting point! i'm not blaming madam yu for jc's grown decisions but like #this is the context in which the idea that loving someone and prioritizing them over your other duties and obligations #can be a betrayal comes up repeatedly #i just don't think either of them shake the possibility very easily #seriously people will be like jiang cheng has to take responsibility for his own problems and his problems are like #that time almost everyone he loved was murdered when he was a child #but what about SINCE then oh you mean when someone (not him) cursed someone else (still not him) and that person assumed it was wei wuxian #and marshalled a small army instead of talking to his cousin about his in-law? #or that time he had total control over whether jin guangshan wanted to publicly scatter some ashes and whether either of his extremely not #invited siblings would crash #the ash scattering party #these are the things he's sad about and having a hard time moving past #u would cry 2 if it happened 2 u

[admirableadmiranda]

Hi lovely person! I hope all is well ❤️ Im back again sliding into your DMs lol 😆 I have another question for you: do you believe LXC had been ignorant of “MXY” true identity this whole time before the incident at JGY chamber and Suibian was unsealed? Do you believe he had any suspicions that it was WWX? I mean, it was kinda hinted right simply based on how close his brother was to this man he probably had never seen before? Even Jin Ling had his suspicions from the jump (but that could be bc he knew the real MXY I guess? idk). Thank you in advance! 🙏🏽 ☺️

Thank you kind anon! Unfortunately I am currently dealing with a broken wrist, but I am making things work as I can.

I do actually think that Lan Xichen was caught off guard by the reveal. Wei Wuxian may not be the most subtle about hiding his actual personality, but Lan Xichen and the rest of the cultivation world had pretty much forgotten what Wei Wuxian's personality actually was. That and the way he came back was an old ritual that no one knew Mo Xuanyu had access to until Wei Wuxian found it in Jinlintai.

I think what he was hoping for was that his brother was moving on to someone new and had chalked up similarities to his brother having a type. Lan Xichen definitely tends to have blind spots and while he will address them when they smack him in the face, he won't look for them before then. That being said I think he does understand why they wouldn't have told him beforehand and he seems to have decided in the wake of knowing that Wei Wuxian is alive to take the chance to reevaluate what he knows and what he has heard.

As for Jin Ling's suspicions, they likely come from Wei Wuxian having directly summoned Wen Ning in front of him. Even if Lan Xichen heard of it, it would be unlikely without him having seen it for himself to take those words on fact. He didn't seem to know Mo Xuanyu well beforehand and is upset and betrayed when he does turn out to be Wei Wuxian. It probably is for the best that while he has these suspicions he doesn't find out for certain for a while, because he gets to know who Wei Wuxian is underneath the rumors and lies and changes his mind on what he's heard all his life.

One of the things that may not be that apparent on a light reading, because the two people that Wei Wuxian interacts with the most are Jiang Cheng and Lan Wangji who both know that it's him from the beginning, is that a lot of people have forgotten who Wei Wuxian actually is. They built him up as a bogeyman fear in their minds, turned him into the demon of the cultivation world and as a result meeting the actual person doesn't make them think of Wei Wuxian, the Yiling Laozu who supposedly killed five thousand Wens and three thousand innocent cultivators, because no one could actually be that person.

I know that CQL somewhat confused things because Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji come off as much closer during his past life, but people really didn't think they were close. Even for those who knew either of them individually, they wouldn't have made the connection and they don't. While those rumors hurt them in the past, it protects him in the present. Even after his name is revealed to the cultivators, most people don't connect the charming man traveling with Hanguang-jun to the fearsome monster in stories.

And why would they? The person who became the monster in the eyes of the cultivation world was the one who pointed out just who they were becoming. The Yiling Laozu of rumor is the reflection of who the jianghu is in the dark. And as much as they'd like to, they can't forget that.

Thank you for your question, kind anon. I hope the world is kind and your days are wonderful.

#mdzs #wei wuxian #lan wangji #lan xichen #jin ling #asks #anon #anon asks #prepare for a late night tangent

[crossdressingdeath]

I have seen so many fics depicting JC pulling LXC out of seclusion. Apparently JC has relatable experiences that make him the “only” person to do it. People even give him a “relationship” with JGY in raising JL to back it up. I just don’t get it. What part of JC’s history has anything relating to LXC? Like, WWX didn’t kill his entire family, WWX didn’t break his trust, WWX didn’t betray him after years of being kind and nice. JC did that to himself and it just doesn’t make sense on why stans make him out to be some poor lowly soul that relates to the only other poor lowly soul at the end of the plot so they obviously need to be together. And then blaming WWX always becomes apart of it somehow.

Yeah, it really is like... why the fuck would LXC want or accept the support of the other person primarily to blame for everything that's gone wrong for him since the Sunshot Campaign? Seriously, they're not friends in any way and all of LWJ's suffering (remembering that LWJ is LXC's darling brother who he would do anything for and can't bear to see unhappy) can be laid at JC's feet! Even if JC could get access to LXC in seclusion (which is already wildly unlikely, given he'd have to get permission from LQR and LWJ as the people in charge of the sect and they would never ever give it) at most he'd try to physically drag LXC out of seclusion and uh... hahaha good luck with that, JC, you incompetent fuckup. And yeah, it always seems to be them bonding over talking shit about WWX, which is like... LXC may not like WWX all that much, but a) gossip is still banned in the Lan sect and b) even if it wasn't LXC wouldn't gossip with JC of all people? JC is horrible? I can definitely see WWX helping (helping; LWJ and LQR would be doing most of the legwork) to lure LXC out of seclusion, but even if JC gave enough of a shit about anyone but himself to try he's too terrible with things like Being Half-Decent To People to accomplish anything except maybe convincing LXC to never ever leave seclusion again.

#mdzs #grapehate #asks #anon

[grewlikefancyflowers]

IMO:

* Bizarrely, I find the setting simultaneously extensive (ie sects/ inter-sect relations) but also really closed off. There is no indication of how the characters actions impact the word outside of the major sects- ie why does no major/minor government step in?

* The female characters are sword fodder. Not MianMian or JYL and Wen Qing since they had a served purpose. I kind of pitied the rest of the female who got a sucky end Madam Lan, the Nie nonexist, Madam Jin with a cheating husband and Qin Su. It just really? Exapt Madam Yu her ending was karma

The cultivation world in MDZS does operate largely in it's own sphere. Although intersect relations and internal politics are explored, the sects are not political leaders, so for the most part the actions of characters or sects don't have that much of an impact on the outside world. They are primarily concerned about cultivation, and about being more powerful than the other cultivation sects.

By ordinary people, the affairs of cultivators are seen as fairly separate to the comings and goings of everyday life - they are described by the waiter ch.28 as 'Those clans who fly about in the clouds.'

In ch.67, 'If he wants to seek revenge, then seek revenge on those cultivators. Please don’t come harm us normal people.”'

Ch.51, 'Lotus Pier wasn’t as other-worldly as the other sects’ residences, shutting their doors and refusing to let commoners come within a boundary miles away.'

WWX thinks in ch.103, 'If Jiang Fengmian had not brought him back to Lotus Pier, he would also have never had any access to the cultivation path and never would have known that there was such a wondrous and beautiful path in this world.'

So there's an element of cultivators being quite otherworldly, their sects and their society are fairly exclusive, the more prestigious clans don't seem to have a great deal of interaction outside of the cultivation world. During the Mo Manor and Yi City arcs, the Lan juniors are often portrayed as quite sheltered and coddled, they're ignorant to the practices of ordinary people, such as the heightened threshold in the coffin home in ch.38.

So... to ask why any centralised government didn't step in to resolve conflicts such as the SSC, the real question is why would they? The conflicts between the sects are between them, the emperor, or whatever relevant authorities, would likely much rather brush these things off as not their problem. The same principle applies for the Wens under WWX's protection, even if he could leave the burial mound to seek assistance elsewhere, authorities outside of the cultivation world have no more reason to care than those within. They're just 50 odd irrelevant people. It's far easier not to care.

I think the only reason any outside authorities would want to intervene, was if the sects internal conflicts were causing enough destruction that it was threatening their own authority.

Onto your next point, I think there is something to be said of how MXTX's treatment of female characters fits into broader trends, but I think she is far from the most egregious example, and criticism of her in this aspect is largely very exaggerated.

Madam Lan, for example, is she treated that much worse than Qingheng Jun? Neither of them appear on screen, we only know them by titles, and some basic facts about them, and they're both killed off screen for manpain.

No Nie women are present in the story, but I can't think of a single Nie character at all, other than the brothers.

Madam Jin, I don't think she's a sympathetic character, she mistreats JGY because she can, tries to push JYL into a marriage with JZX even when she, at that time, isn't interested, and insinuates that its inappropriate for JYL to be alone with WWX, even after she has asserted that WWX is her brother, and no decent person would be best friends with Madam Yu. Did she, as a character, deserve better than a cheating husband and an uninteresting, off screen, death? I don't think so. She's just a side character with only a handful of lines, from what we see of her, she isn't even that nice a person. While she's not given a lot of depth, neither is JGS. Also I have no evidence for this at all, but it just occurred to me that it's entirely possible that JGY killed her... like I know she died of 'grief' or whatever but-

Qin Su, she's such a non-character, its hard to feel any emotional connection to her. I don't think this is a bad thing, if MXTX spent a lot of time developing her character, just for the sake of killing her off, it'd feel gratuitous. Her death serves a purpose to the plot, and she illustrates how far JGY is willing to go for his ambition. There doesn't really need to be any more to her than this. She's not treated worse than male side characters - Su She's not that deep, he also dies for JGY.

I don't think MXTX's writing of female characters is beyond criticism, but in these examples, there's not really any bias in the way they are treated compared to male counterparts.

Looking at other examples of female characters being 'sword fodder' in other media, MXTX's writing barely fits these trends. Take Super/natural for example, they introduce a female character, she's given a fair amount screen time, we're supposed to like her, and sooner or later, she's killed, in a manner that usually serves absolutely no purpose to plot or themes or anything else. We get a few shots of Sam and Dean looking mopey before they forget she exists in the next episode. Rinse and repeat. The Super/natural writers just seem to kill them all for fun, at least every death in MDZS has a purpose.

#mdzs #mxtx

[ouyangzizhensdad]

So one thing I am confused about. I see a lot of takes on how Wwx acted like a gay stereotype in the first few chapters. And this is pointed out as a mark of his homophobia (as in he's homophobic because he thinks that's how a gay person would act). But, from context of the book, it seems to me he's weaponizing what *society* will think a gay man would act like to get out of what he views as a dangerous situation? As in, to me he's deliberately playing up stereotypes... (1/2)

(2/2) to make people uncomfortable and leave him alone. This isn't to say he's not internalized some stuff. Working through those feelings is a major part of the book. But it feels like people seem to be missing the fact that he's using how people are uncomfortable with Mxy as a means to get out of what he sees as a tight situation. Rather like how we get a woman using 'lady problems' as an excuse to make men uncomfortable and leave her alone. Or am I completely of the mark?

Oh anon, dear anon, how did you know I’ve been meaning to write a post about this since I’ve first been introduced to these takes? Have you taken a trip to the dark recesses of my mind lately (or maybe spied on my drafts)? 

Before we get started, I do want to address the fact that the ExR translation, which is generally how international fans first access the novel, uses terms/ways of phrasing things about cut-sleeves that make it seem more connoted than what you can see in the original chinese, thereby colouring how we may perceive WWX’s opinions on cutsleeves (since he is the narrator). If you compare pumpkinpaix’s translation of chapter 2 to that of ExR’s, you may understand what I mean (I personally went and checked the original with my limited chinese skills and pumpkinpaix’s is the most faithful translation imo).

Compare and contrast: 

Pumpkinpaix’s translation: “Thank goodness, this body had not been born with a strange appearance, only strange tastes. Here was a grown man who not only wore a full face of rouge and powder, but wore it in such an ugly fashion!“

ExR scans’ translation: “Fortunately, the body wasn’t born this way—it was only one of the owner’s penchants. He was no-doubt a man, yet he was covered with makeup (not to mention, badly applied makeup). Ugh, how unbearable!“

And another: 

Pumpkinpaix’s translation: “Not only chased, but banished with great shame: for Mo Xuanyu was a cutsleeve who even dared to recklessly molest and harass his peers. With this public scandal, along with the mediocrity of his talent and the insignificance of his cultivation progress, there was no reason to let him stay in the family any longer.

To make matters worse, no one knew what kind of shock he’d suffered, but after he returned, he seemed to have gone completely mad. He had good days and bad—it was as if he had been scared witless. After reading to this point, Wei Wuxian furrowed his brow. Being just a cutsleeve was one thing, but a lunatic as well! No wonder his face was all covered in powder and rouge like an old hanged ghost, and no wonder no one found the bloody array surprising.”

ExR scans’ translation: “On top of that, he was driven back shamefully.Mo XuanYu was homosexual, and had enough nerve to harass the other disciples. The scandal was revealed to the public and, as he had few achievements in terms of cultivation, there were no reasons for him to stay in the clan.Like adding frost to snow, aside from the event itself, when Mo XuanYu returned, he often behaved in a crazy manner, almost as if his life was scared out of him.The story was almost too complex to be put into words. Wei WuXian’s eyebrows twitched.Not only a lunatic, a homosexual lunatic as well. That explained why there were enough rouge and powder on his face to make him look like a hanged ghost, and also why nobody was surprised at the large, bloody array on the ground.”

See how the latter translation makes it seem as if WWX were thinking that being a gay lunatic is worse than being a lunatic, and that him being a ‘gay lunatic’ explains his appearance; whereas, in the former, it appears to be more of a comment about how MXY was perceived by his family as a disgrace, and underlines that the fact he is a “lunatic” explains how ‘usual’ his appearance and the shack’s disarray were to his cousin and his lackeys.

But to address your actual point, I think saying that WWX weaponizes what society think of how a gay would act is still an oversimplification. WWX is in fact weaponizing the very specific nature of MXY’s reputation, which includes him being known to be:

a lunatic

a cutsleeve

a molester/harasser

The fact that people even suggest that this is how WWX views gay people is ludicrous to me because of the context in which it is presented in the novel. WWX is not trying to “pass” as MXY by attempting what he believes to be an authentic performance of being a gay man. WWX, from the get-go, acts in public in ways that are incompatible with what he knows of MXY. When he first gets out of the shack, he acts in ways he knows are contrary to how MXY would have acted. 

“Thinking to recover the face he’d [A-Tong] just lost, he jumped over and, like one would reprimand a dog, waved his hand and scolded, “Shoo, shoo! Go back! What did you come out for!”

Even towards a beggar or a fly, one wouldn’t be more unpleasant. These servants had very likely acted like this towards Mo Xuanyu in the past. After all, he never resisted, so they could be this unscrupulously reckless. Wei Wuxian, with a light kick, knocked A’Tong head over heels, laughing, “Now, who is it you think you’re insulting?”

Finished kicking, he followed the sound of the hubbub, walking towards the east.“ [Chapter 3 ]

Instead, WWX weaponizes MXY’s reputation (the trifecta of lunatic-cutsleeve-harasser) whenever he needs it to either 1) get the information he needs/test a theory, 2) manipulate people into certain actions 3) quickly get out of a sticky situation. Again, it is not meant to be an authentic representation of what he believes to be a gay man: it is a targeted attack with expected results. 

Let’s take for instance the East Hall Scene at Mo Mansion. WWX goes there, and slips into a lunatic persona which, from what we can infer by the Mo Family’s reaction, is not even a close performance of MXY’s “lunacy”. At this point, WWX is trying to test out if publicly humiliating the Mo Family will be enough to fulfill his part of the contract MXY forced upon him. It is the first time he brings up MXY’s being a cutsleeve, and he does so in the process of trying to cause disgrace by implying his cousin might not have had pure intentions towards him. The text makes it clear that he is only doing so to attack the Mo Family’s face, implying unspeakable designs upon MXY by his cousin. 

Unexpectedly, Wei Wuxian spoke again, “Speaking of, he not only shouldn’t have stolen my things, he really shouldn’t have gone to steal them in the middle of the night. Who doesn’t know, this son here likes men! He might not know shame, but I know not to tie my shoes in a melon patch!”

Madam Mo gasped in horror, shouting, “What are you saying in front of your village elders! How  can you have so little face; A’Yuan is your younger cousin!”

When it came to wild displays of atrocious behavior, Wei Wuxian was a master. In the past when he ran wild, he still had to mind appearances for he couldn’t let others accuse him of having no family upbringing, but now since he was a lunatic anyways, what face did he need! He could go straight to making a scene, acting on whatever pleased him. He straightened his neck and stated with righteous confidence, “He clearly knows he’s my younger cousin, and he still didn’t try to avoid arousing suspicion—exactly who has less face?! If you don’t want any, fine, but don’t spoil my innocence! I still want to find a good man!!!” [Chapter 3]

It is also important to remember MXY’s reputation as a molester/harrasser, which WWX leans into at certain points in the novel (for instance when he gets ‘caught’ trying to steal LWJ’s seal to exit the Cloud Recesses and pretends to have been spying on him bathing to try to get kicked out instead). I do not consider that WWX actually believes at face-value the accusations; like LWJ, he is wary of judging without having all the information, having himself suffered groundless accusations (and, surprise surprise, it turns out the accusations were fabricated by JGY! btw, for all the people out there who say MXTX is homophobic because she wrote a gay character who’s a molester...... i am begging you to get some reading comprehension, even store-bought is fine at this point). And if people think MXTX did not mean to emphasize the importance of that reputation, I ask them to please pay attention to what is said before WWZ implies JC is trying to flirt with him/flirts with LWJ later on in the novel (in front, as well, of many of the Juniors). Notice how we are getting the trifecta again?: 

Even after thinking it over multiple times, Jiang Cheng still couldn’t accept the fact [that Zidian had not worked]. He pointed at Wei Wuxian and scowled, “Who on Earth are you?”

Finally, a meddlesome bystander added a word to the conversation. He coughed, “Jiang-zongzhu, you might have not paid attention to these things and thus remained unaware. Mo Xuanyu was part the LanlingJin Sect’s… Ahem, he used to be a foreign disciple of the Jin Sect. But, because his spiritual powers were low and he didn’t work hard in his studies, and also had that… He harassed a peer and was thrown out of the LanlingJin Sect. I’ve also heard that he lost his marbles? In my opinion, he was probably bitter from being unable to cultivate using the correct path and ventured off onto the wrong one.”

Jiang Cheng asked, “That? What do you mean?” 

“That… As in that…” 

Someone couldn’t help but comment, “The cut-sleeve penchant!” 

Jiang Cheng’s eyebrows twitched. His eyes which stared at Wei Wuxian seemed more disgusted than before. [Chapter 9]

The text also makes it clear that WWX is drawing upon more than just “Eww gay!” when he’s weaponizing MXY’s reputation to try to get away from JC and LWJ. He’s also thinking about JC’ inferiority complex and LWJ’s (perceived) serious nature. 

“Then,” Jiang Cheng replied coldly, “why is Lan-er-gongzi going to such great lengths to protect an unimportant person such as him?”

Out of the blue, Wei Wuxian suppressed laughter could be heard.

“Jiang-zongzhu, umm, I’ll feel very troubled if you keep on bothering me like this.”

Jiang Cheng’s eyebrow twitched again. His instincts told him that this person would definitely not say anything pleasant next.

"Thank you for being so enthusiastic, but your thoughts are quite off. Even though I am attracted to men, I don’t like just any type of man, much less follow anyone who waves at me. I’m not interested in men like you.”

Wei Wuxian was purposely trying to disgust him. Jiang Cheng had always hated being defeated when compared with others, no matter how pointless the comparison was. If anyone said that he was not as good as someone else, he’d get angered and not think about anything else until he won against them. As expected, Jiang Cheng’s face darkened.

“Oh, really? Then, may I ask which type you’re interested in?

“Which type?” he replied, “Well, I am very much attracted to people like Hanguang-jun.” 

Lan Wangji could not tolerate this sort of frivolous and foolish joke at all. If he felt disgusted, he would definitely draw a line between them and keep his distance. Disgusting two people at once—this was killing two birds with one stone!” [Chapter 9]

I won’t go through all the examples and moments in the novel (even in forced-voluntary self-isolation it is too much to ask out of me), but I hope my point was illustrated well enough with just these! Thank you again for your ask, it forced me to finally write it all down!

#mdzs meta #mdzs #anti-mxtx discourse #wwx #mxy #lwj #Anonymous #long post

[alice-in-wonderart]

I really like your writing and i was hoping you could do what you did with lxc jgy and nhs and i was wondering if you could do that with the juniors thx

OHMYGOSH, so many people are requesting UWU. ❤️ When I said the Juniors get the most love around here, I wasn't joking! (which of course is great, our lovely boys deserve the love) A day after making a post about having 3 similar asks, appeared a wild 4th one, so here we are, killing 4 birds with one stone! From what I recall, the boys are 16 (legal in my country) but for the sake of being politically accurate and tastefully uncreepy, I'll still age them up ~ This was quite difficult to write, since I'd never even so much as considered writing anything remotely un-soft for the boys, but I hope you ike it anyways. Somehow the softest hcs turned out to be for XXC too 🤣

Enjoy the spice, my lovelies! ❤️

P.S. Thank you all for being so kind, you guys make writing a true pleasure ✌️

P.P.S I know it took me forever to write this! i want to apologise for that, since university started, writing has become a luxury and quite frankly, writing nsfw for the juniors was nearly impossible to do 😵 Await more content in the *hopefully* near future.

Jin Ling

My gosh, getting him to undress would be difficult. For real, even after a thousand years of being in a relationship with you, he'd still be embarrassed when it comes to physical touch of any sort. Not to say he wouldn't want it, he just has to go through a semi-tsundere mini meltdown first. But worry not, it would only take him a minute to get over it.

Jin Ling? More like Jin Long. (I'm sorry) He may not be the girthiest of them all, but let me tell you - he takes great pride in his length.

He may act tough and macho, but underneath all that hot-headedness is somebody, who absolutely loves being coddled. More often than not, he'd let you take over the reigns, but believe me he won't go down without a fight. He is the absolute dictionary definition of a bratty bottom. In fact he the brattiest bottom. You want him to undress? Undress him yourself if you're so eager. But in reality, he'd be ready to indulge you in absolutely everything you wish.

Jin Ling is a sucker for praise. Tell him how good he is, praise him and he'll become putty in your hands. There's nothing he loves more than hearing you moan his name out in utter bliss. Knowing he's the one who brings you so much pleasure really strokes his ego, so to say.With Jin Ling, gentle gestures and kind words can get you very far.

He gets surprisingly dominant and demanding when jealous. The one sure way to get him to pound you into the mattress is making him jealous. It really only takes a random unsuspecting boy to chat you up the wrong way and you'd be in for the dicking of a lifetime. (as an aftermath, following a metric ton of complaining and passive agressive anger) He would absolutely mark up your skin as well - a precaution.

Sometimes, he might MIGHT get jealous of the other Juniors. Maybe you'd spent more time with them, or payed them more attention. Sometimes he'd be at work and miss out. Then, you'd have to remind him, that no matter what, only he gets to see you sprawled on his bed, his name on your lips, and tje sweet smell of sex in the air.

Speaking of work, you would be his best stress relief. After a long day of boring sect business, returning home and getting to ravish you would be his ideal evening, although he would never admit it. During those moments, where exhaustion would get the best of both of you, yet sleep would not come, passionate night of lovemaking would be the remedy for all your problems. And with those burning emotions in his heart, such nights would be the most memorable.

Lan Sizhui

You'd think Lan Sizhui would be the purest, most innocent of the Juniors, and you wouldn't be wrong, but at the same time you wouldn't be right either. Overtime, he'd transform from this sweet, gentle lover, who always makes sure you finish first, to this super experimental, utterly intoxicating beaST, who still makes sure you finish first. The more he gets accustomed to your body, the more confident and daring he'd become.

He's been pretty touch-starved for most of his life, so getting intimate with you would take some readjustment from him. Every single touch would excite him, every gentle moan would make his heart melt. And this sensitivity of his would, in turn, seek intimacy even more. He'd want nothing more than to hold you close and make you shiver in delight, to hear his name escape your lips and have you all to himself.

He'd be absolutely willing to experiment. Anything you'd want to try, he'd love to try with you. Here is a good time to say, he's also a pretty versatile switch. Whether you'd want to set your own pace and ride him to oblivion, or let him tie you up and make you see stars all depends on your mood. He loves it all and is a natural in both.

In fact, having you tied up with his ribbon (seems it runs in the family) is one of his favourite sights. To him it is so beautiful and delicate, yet at the same time it's his way of being possessive, of showing the world that you are his lover, that you belong to each other.

This boy has STAMINA. We all know the Lans are a force to be reckoned with, that underneath that sophisticated demeanor, polite gestures and snow white robes there is pure strength, acquired over years of training. That strength allows Sizhui to last for ROUNDS. If you're lucky enough (and away from Gusu) he could go nearly all night long with little effort.

One thing you found out completely by accident was his love for bitemarks..on himself. As long as he could hide them with ease, the moment he feels teeth on his skin, it's game over. And he wouldn't verbally admit it, but the sounds he'd make and how he'd move to give you more access to his skin is a perfect enough sign.

He isn't too rough per se and would much prefer lovemaking over straight up fucking, so quickies aren't all that common. He wants to take his time with you and explore your body. He'd nearly always rather wait until the bed at home is an option.

In general, sex with a Lan is like sex with an elf - beautiful, breathtaking, memorable. Lan Sizhui is no exception, though he'd go to great lengths for you. After all, there's nothing better than seeing you fucked out, drowning in pleasure.

Lan Jingyi

This boy, my gosh, this boy. Out of all the Juniors, this boy is the most dominant one. And when I say dominant, I mean he is the only one, who comes with all the jazz - bondage, teasing, roleplay, you name it - he'll do it. He is lowkey the kinkiest, who'll do nearly anything just to get you off. And honestly, he takes great pride in that.

His sex drive is that of a goddamn rabbit. There is rarely a moment he wouldn't want to be buried between your legs. His motto is "the more the wetter better". For that reason, being away from you for long is his worst nightmare. Not being able to hold you? To kiss you? To make love to you? Blasphemous. So, the moment you two see each other, after some time of being away, he'd be all over you. Of course, sex is far from being the only thing on his mind, but it it's a giant plus, which he wouldn't want to miss.

Lan Jingyi is a sucker for legs, no matter what length, especially thighs. He loves feeling you wrap your legs around him, or squeeze his head between your thighs. He is a firm believer, that this is the best way to go. Nine times out of ten, whenever you two are making out, his hands would be all over your legs. He just can't help himself.

Out of all the juniors, since he is the most experimental, so with some coaxing he might agree to a threesome. Of course, that would be much later in your relationship, when your mutual trust is hard as a rock. (and not only that) Though, he'd want to pick the 3rd person involved! (most likely Sizhui)

He would absolutely introduce food in bed. Actually, that would happen completely accidentally. It would all start with a handful of loquats, which you'd bring to him while away on a trip together. You'd feed each other the lush fruits between heated kisses, enjoying each other's company and he'd realize, that he could combine 2 of his favourite things - you and food. From that moment on, he'd try out all kinds of food - from sweet to salty, deserts, fruits and everything in between.

He would absolutely want to get you off somewhere in Gusu. The very idea of doing something so dirty and profane at a place with so many strict rules would turn him on to no end. And the thrill of potentially getting caught would be like a catalyst to him. The library pavillion? The cold springs? Just let it be in Gusu. His own chambers just aren't satisfying enough, they aren't risky enough.

He would quickly get addicted to you and your body, and when that happens - there is just no going back. Though I doubt you'd want to.

Ouyang Zizhen

Ouyang Zizhen is quite the catch through and through. There is nobody quite as cheeky as this man right here. As the proud, versatile, daredevil-esque boy that he is, he would love to tease the everloving god out of you in every single way possible. But the moment you tease him back, he'd be in shambles. He would totally sneak inappropriate touches whenever in public, but run a hand up his leg under the table while having dinner, or perhaps a friendly get-together, and suddenly his cheeks would go beet red and he'd go through a mini existential crisis.

Your long, heated nights together would become his reckoning. He'd never truly admit it, but goddamn, he'd become so addicted, to the feeling, the excitement. Especially when it comes to having sex in public.

Speaking of, while he wouldn't openly talk about your adventures in bed, he'd absolutely drop little hints about it in piblic, whenever you're freshly fucked and easy to tease. Intentionally letting himself look more disheveled than usual, pointing out any "little marks" showing on your skin and of course - that knowing smirk of his. And believe me, he fully expects payback.

The other member who might, MIGHT agree to a threesome would be Ouyang Zizhen. He is a curious man, who would like to try anything you have to offer, though jealousy could be a side effect. He'd want to have a say in who'd be the 3rd person. And while having two women succumb to his every beg and call is a very well-hidden desire of his, at this point he is so invested and in love with you, that such thoughts are out of the question.

The one thing that gets him riled up in bed is wax play. What started as "lighting a candle to set the mood right" ended up being one of the most passionate, lust-ridden, nights of his life. He loves how wax drips down on your skin, peeling off of your every curve. He'd get different kinds of candles, with all kinds of fancy textures amd smells, just to watch the expensive wax drip all over you.

Teasing is his go-to. He is a master of teasing. And his specialty is edging. He could prolong your orgasm, get you to practically beg for release, all while he's hard as a rock and still keep edging you. And his mouth is his secret weapon.

He'd learn how to play your body like a violin, all to leave you begging for more. He could go on for hours. And he would. Because of that, the orgasms would be godly. And he takes great pride in that as well.

Xiao Xingchen

This man is the dictionary definition of soft. His kisses are sweet, his touches are caring and his sex is phenomenally passionate. Intimacy is important to him, since he hasn't had the chance and desire to reveal himself before many people. (except you, that is.) No, he isn't just a soft lover. He is THE soft lover.

He is the king of love-making. To him, your pleasure comes first and there is nothing he loves more, than to hold you close and feel your body on his.

He generally prefers to bottom and leave the reigns in your hands, so he could just hold you close and enjoy your body to its fullest, but occasionally he'd absolutely be down to switch it up and spend hours loving you deep into the night. (his words, not mine) Knowing you are there, on top of him, riding him into oblivion, he'd almost wish he could see you. But then, he'd run his hands down your body, hear your angelic voice and immediately lose his mind into pleasure once more.

Lovemaking is his absolute specialty and gentle passion is HIGHKEY his forté. Each sweet touch of his, every choked breath, every heated kiss is so full of love and desire, you could drown in it. He wears his heart on his sleeve and whenever you end up tangled in the sheets, he pours all of his emotions into bringing you ecstasy.

He is extremely touchy, since that is his way of seeing you. He loves to just glide his hands over your smooth skin, exploring every curve, enjoying the warmth of your body against his. His fingers are long and nimble, so he uses them to his advantage. And somehow, every time he touches you, he finds something new to love about you. Because of that, being tied up is a little specific with him. He would let you do it, but only occasionally, since that would leave him completely at your mercy WITHOUT being able to feel you.

He is absolutely a fan of boobs. Big, small, size has never mattered. He loves the warmth, the softness and the fact, that whenever he lays his head on your chest, he can hear your heartbeat.

Whisper in his ear amd he's a second away from breaking. Moan his name and he's a goner. His ears are pretty sensitive, so hearing your voice and feeling your breath would turn him rock hard in record time. Call it a voice kink, call it obsession, whatever it is, it's the surest way to make him nearly beg for your touch.

Xiao Xingxhen is a gentle, yet madly passionate lover, who is ready to give you the stars. And once you get undressed for the first time, he'd find himself so utterly in love with you, he'd get nearly obsessed. And while extremities are not his thing, it wouldn't be uncommon for him to gently lead you away to your shared bed, whenever out on a stroll, just to undress you and kiss your breath away.

Thank you for reading~

#mo dao su zhi #mo dao zu shi #grandmaster of demonic arts #grandmaster of demonic cultivation #mdzs fanfiction #the untamed #mdzs #the juniors #lan juniors #mdzs juniors #junior squad #lan sizhui x reader #mdzs lan sizhui #lan sizhui #lan jingyi #jin ling #jin rulan #mdzs jin ling #Mdzs lan jingyi #ouyang zizhen #Mdzs ouyang zizhen #xiao xicheng #xiao xingchen x reader #xiao xingchen #mdzs xiao xingchen #the untamed lan sizhui #the untamed x reader #the untamed juniors #The untamed xiao xingxhen #daozhang

[ibijau]

Hi. Hope you are doing well. Mpreg anon again. You said you might take a prompt? Prompt: A month after Guanyin Temple, NHS visits LXC in seclusion and vents. They have a argument and LXC ends up fainting from stress. On examination, it's found out that LXC is pregnant with JGY's child, conceived on the same day he was kidnapped. Whether you want to make that con, dub con or non con is up to you. Even though the wounds are fresh, the two try to start over and fall in love.

well. I guess this will give you ONE of the things you asked for. But, like, I deviated a lot, oops?

warning for mentions of rape, and for a/b/o

“It's the easiest trick of all, isn't it?” Lan Xichen bitterly remarked. “Anyone knows how to make an unbound omega behave.”

Nie Huaisang could only stare at the other man's neck in horror.

He had wondered, more than once, how Jin Guangyao had managed to get such docility out of Lan Xichen that night, why their Er-ge had been so willing to listen to every excuse, every lie.

It was to ask about this that Nie Huaisang had come to the Cloud Recesses, entering in secret. His jade token still worked, granting him free access to the entire place. It had been easy to avoid what few disciples patrolled around (the Lans were all too trusting) and make his way to the Hanshi. Nie Huaisang hadn't knocked, knowing already that his presence was undesirable. He'd gone inside directly and found Lan Xichen getting ready for bed, wearing only loose underclothes that revealed what his usually tight and high riding collars otherwise hid.

A bite mark on the side of his neck.

“How long ago?” Nie Huaisang hissed, feeling betrayed all over again.

If Lan Xichen had been Jin Guangyao's lover all along, perhaps even before Nie Mingjue's death, then Nie Huaisang should have planned for both of them to die.

Lan Xichen glared at him.

“Is that what you think of me?”

“Er-ge can't blame me for being curious.”

Glaring harder, Lan Xichen tried to wrap the collar of his shirt closer against in skin, vainly trying to hide the mark on his skin.

“You've never told me what you were going through,” he accused. “Why should I owe you the truth when you never thought I deserved it?”

“I'm not the one who mated with a murderer, Xichen,” Nie Huaisang retorted. “I hope you understand how different our situations are.”

“Are they really?” Lan Xichen snapped, taking a step forward.

Nie Huaisang took a step back without thinking, fear spiking in his guts, then returned to his position, pretending he'd never moved.

“I did not choose this,” Lan Xichen hissed, towering over Nie Huaisang. “And it would not have happened if you'd told me what he did to Da-ge as soon as you discovered it.”

“And risk exposing myself to his accomplice?” Nie Huaisang mocked. “I think not. How long ago, Er-ge? Just give me that much, at least. Or should I guess?” he suggested, sneering at the other man. “Ah... perhaps it was when you first met him? Another stupid omega falling for the wrong alpha and opening his legs right away, I've seen it happen again and again. But no, you wouldn't have let him go that easily, would you? And you wouldn't have sent him to Nightless City. Later then... When you swore brotherhood with him and Da-ge? A rather strong way to celebrate that new link between you.”

Nie Huaisang took out his fan and nervously played with it, pretending the look of sheer pure hatred in Lan Xichen's eyes did not terrify him.

That it did not hurt him, for things to have gotten this bad between them.

“No, A-Yao wouldn't have needed to marry Qin Su if you'd let him mount you then,” Nie Huaisang decided, opening his fan, only to close it again right away. “Later still. Maybe when...”

“He did this to me when I went to confront him about killing Da-ge,” Lan Xichen shouted, baring his neck. “He blocked my spiritual energy, fed me a potion, and sent me into a forced heat so he could do this to me!”

Nie Huaisang stumbled backward, nearly dropping his fan in shock.

He'd known that Jin Guangyao was desperate toward the end. Nie Huaisang had planned for him to get desperate, so he would make mistakes and reveal himself. Many others had suffered, certainly, but none of that had matter, not compared to the satisfaction of driving Jin Guangyao to absolute terror, to making him lose everything he'd worked so hard for.

It didn't matter if others were hurt as well.

It didn't matter, until Lan Xichen was hurt.

“I'd never have imagined he'd go that far!” Nie Huaisang exclaimed. “I swear I didn't think...”

“Neither did I,” Lan Xichen dryly cut him. “After so many years, I almost forgot sometimes that he was an alpha. I'll never forget again.”

Nie Huaisang nodded. It had never fully registered before that Jin Guangyao was, in spite of his size and mild manners, an alpha. He looked and acted more like he was a beta, like Nie Huaisang himself, or even sometimes an omega.

But he had been an alpha after all, in all the worst ways, and Nie Huaisang suddenly half wished he could bring Jin Guangyao back to life, just for the pleasure of seeing him die again. It was something to discuss with Wei Wuxian perhaps.

“Did it take?” Nie Huaisang asked. “You said he forced you to have a heat, did it take?”

Lan Xichen grimaced, and covered his mark again.

“I think that hardly concerns you. I've already told you more than I wished to say, just to make sure I'm not the next person you decide to be rid of.”

“Er-ge, I swear...”

“You swear? And what value does your word hold now?” Lan Xichen asked. “You swore also that you weren't sure whether Jin Guangyao moved or not. But this,” he gestured at his neck, “goes both way. He would have found it as hard to hurt me as it would have been for me to stand against him. So swear all you want, Nie zongzhu. I'm done trusting people who have shown themselves unworthy of it.”

“Er-ge, I really didn't mean to...”

“You really didn't mean to hurt me, perhaps?”

Nie Huaisang flinched at the unspoken comparison to Jin Guangyao who had professed the same thing. He'd known for a long while that they were too similar. The only way to destroy a man like Jin Guangyao was to use the same weapons as him, to become nearly indistinguishable from the evil one sought to eliminate.

Nie Huaisang had succeeded in one aspect, and in doing so had failed in all others.

“I understand, Er-ge,” he whispered with a bow. “I will leave now. Do you... should I return the jade token to you?”

“You'll need it to leave the Cloud Recesses,” Lan Xichen replied. “Keep it if you like. I'll have it be deactivated tomorrow. Unless you have sect business to deal with, I don't think you should return here, Nie zongzhu.”

“Of course. Then... farewell, Er-ge.”

“Lan zongzhu, if you don't mind.”

Nie Huaisang flinched again, but nodded.

“As you wish. Farewell, Lan zongzhu. I hope... I hope things will be better, from now on.”

Lan Xichen sneered, an unsettling expression to see on him, but did not reply. Nie Huaisang knew better than to insist, and promptly exited the Hanshi, knowing he was unlikely to ever enter it again.

#xisang #kinda but oops not really though they could get there after healing some #nie huaisang #lan xichen #mdzs #jau writes #I know you said happy ending but uh... yeah #Anonymous

[paradife-loft]

Hi! I absolutely love the meta about NMJ's Empathy memories being unreliable, and it's got me wondering about how his qi deviation and death actually went. Since LXC says he saw the qi deviation (and Fatal Journey says it was in public), what's your take on how JGY got NMJ into his secret room so he and Xue Yang could use the Tiger Seal (and eventually kill him)? Fatal Journey has the Nie sect holding a funeral for him, so presumably NHS had /soneone's/ body to bury, but then in The Untamed LXC later says something like he 'hasn't heard from' NMJ in years and had feared the worst, so things... don't seem to add up? What do you think?

Aaah, okay, so: first off, I’m incredibly sorry it’s taken me so long to answer this, and I nonetheless  very much appreciate your interest in my opinions here <3 If you’re still hanging around/following me/reading my blog, anon, idk how obvious it’s been that I’ve… not been having the best few months brain-wise, but that’s basically all I can offer as an excuse for why this reply is coming so late. Thank you for your patience!

So, okay, I think I’m going to try and tackle this question from a couple different angles. First of all, I think it’s worth looking at the material provided in the contained story of the 50 episodes of The Untamed on its own, to see what that suggests, before bringing in outside or supplemental sources, which is what for this purpose I’d consider spin-off movies, details in other versions of the broader MDZS story material, etc. to be. Also, I want to note upfront that while I do tend to incorporate different details and versions of events from both CQL and MDZS into my personal headcanon, what I write in my fic, etc. because I think they tend to provide interesting possibilities, elaborations, and what-ifs for a broader composite MDZS-adaptation-universe – for the purposes of this post, I’m going to stick to material from The Untamed and Fatal Journey only. Mostly, my reason for that is that there’s a few logistically distinct details of how the qi deviation happens in MDZS compared to CQL – one being, it happens at Qinghe rather than Lanling – that I believe affect the timeline of what Jin Guangyao is doing with Nie Mingjue’s corpse in the first place.

Alright so, in The Untamed alone, the evidence such as we have includes: the Empathy sequence involving the qi deviation in episode 41, and Lan Xichen’s statement in episode 39 recounting that he saw it happen himself at Jinlintai, and that after hearing nothing from/about Nie Mingjue since, he’s been “mentally prepared” - presumably, for the news that he’s dead. What I’m inclined to take from those two pieces of information, is essentially a story like this: NMJ qi deviates, very publically, and at some point while this is happening, he makes a break for it and leaves Jinlintai, and whatever presumably messy trail he leaves in the process ends up going cold for anyone trying to follow, with no NMJ around to be seen. With various factors at Jinlintai invested in retrieving him for attempting to turn him into a controllable fierce corpse, it’s pretty easy to imagine that, besides whatever above-board search party tried to follow him, there would also have been another party closely watching his movements for an opportune moment to slip in and scoop him up to bring him back to the secret treasure room for fierce corpse experimentation – hence why the trail would’ve gone cold.

Now, the actual scene showing the qi deviation itself doesn’t include multiple elements I’m positing or including here – specifically, the presence of a bunch of third parties actually witnessing it, LXC included, and then also the idea that NMJ ever left that one landing at the top of the stairs during the qi deviation at all. But, since we see in other parts of the Empathy sequence that the events shown can be… a bit more impressionistic than accurate; and furthermore since it seems reasonable to posit that the memories of the time when he has a literal break with reality might be even less literally reliable than the rest of them – I think those aspects can be reasonably explained away as that scene portraying more of what the qi deviation felt like from the inside, than what an outside observer would’ve seen. Nie Mingjue’s focus is Jin Guangyao, so Jin Guangyao is all he sees – up until Nie Huaisang breaks through that monomaniacal focus and is seen, finally, as himself.

(If you particularly want to pull out some feelings, I might even suggest the idea that finally seeing a distraught NHS was the thing that pulled NMJ sufficiently out of his rage to be lucid enough to flee – and that he booked it in part because he was terrified and ashamed to possibly hurt his younger brother, whether physically or emotionally by letting him see NMJ in such an awful state.

So then, aside from that: the question of what we see in Fatal Journey. I’ve actually been trying to find an answer about what kinds of mourning customs would be followed or even possible if a family didn’t actually have their loved one’s body on hand to bury, but thusfar my internet searching hasn’t really gotten me any useful information one way or another – if anyone reading has an idea or some good sources to point me to, I’d love to hear them! Everything I’ve read so far seems to very tightly marry the performance of appropriate rites and the presence of a body together.

That said, looking back through the actual funeral scene in Fatal Journey, I also wasn’t able to notice the presence of a coffin anywhere in the set, either? We see a memorial tablet, set up in the front of the throne room at Qinghe, and what looks like a brief shot of some offerings, and NHS stoking the fire, but in the couple brief scenes of the inside of the hall, I don’t think there was a coffin set up there? (Or, for that matter, out in the courtyard which we get a longer look at, either.) Compared to what I at least assume is a coffin with Jin Zixuan’s body inside during the mourning scene in episode 32, I feel like it’s reasonable to guess that, even with Fatal Journey included, whatever mourning rites took place at Qinghe after NMJ’s death, they may simply have not involved a body or a burial at all.

- And actually, now that I’m thinking about it, taking Fatal Journey into consideration overall suggests that it might ultimately be the norm at Qinghe to hold mourning rites without a body present – because per the lore additions in the movie, the Nie sect leaders go down to die on their own at the bottom of the saber tomb, and it sure doesn’t look like anybody had been going down there to retrieve them once they did? So, I don’t know, maybe there’s some sort of symbolic burial of something associated with the sect leader as a Nie custom, to keep things looking a bit more normal and less “we build a tomb for these resentment-filled blade spirits that eat our sect leader’s sanity”, and that’s also what ended up being done for Nie Mingjue?  But, yeah, there’s no real confirmation happening even in the movie that NHS was able to come back with a body to bury, so I don’t think that necessarily contradicts the idea that NMJ could have gone missing during his qi deviation and never been properly recovered for a 100% confirmed death.

(That said, I personally don’t tend to incorporate, oh, most of the specific events or points of lore from Fatal Journey into my own readings on various elements of the story? Like, quite frankly, I don’t really like the movie that much, and I think it opens up a lot more unnecessary character and worldbuilding questions without doing a good job of integrating them back into the rest of The Untamed’s continuity (er, such as it exists XD). So I don’t necessarily have an opinion on whether “the Nie sect generally doesn’t do bodily burials of is clan leaders” is an idea anyone should pick up for The Untamed canon; merely that if you do take the events of Fatal Journey as canon, it certainly seems like it could be a possibility.)

(And again, big, big big disclaimer here that, e.g. if holding any kind of mourning rites without a body present is actually super Not Done, then what I’m saying with this part might be totally moot, and then well…. who knows, there’s plenty of speculation that could be used to cover that gap up – maybe “they never found the body” wasn’t actually widespread knowledge, but rather just information LXC had special access to due to the relationships he had with the people involved? – and some set of people depending on your preferences conspired to get another body to stand in for NMJ’s to allow them to hold a funeral? ….Which honestly sounds incredibly sketchy to me on its own, but considering all the other professionally Yikes-style desecrations of bodies that happen in this story…. who knows? I’m really just tossing out ideas here at this point, not saying I necessarily endorse any of them outside of “I think this could potentially work in some way without being out of character for anybody”.)

Anyway… I hope that answers your question, anon, and is otherwise interesting for everyone else reading? Thank you for the ask, and apologies again for taking so long to respond! <3

#ask a James #meta #no good things for the poor sad cultivators #The Untamed #Nie Mingjue #rambling #op #Anonymous

[silverseedthings]

Jin Ling is a little younger Fix-It AU

Alright, so I had a silly thought:

I’ve read a lot of fic where Jin Guangyao didn’t love Qin Su but wanted the political connections of marrying her (plus the appearence of respectability inherent in being a married man) and he seduced her in order to force her family’s hand since they wouldn’t let them marry. 

So far, this makes sense. Jin Guangyao is an experienced manipulator, he has charm, he has dimples, he’s a war hero. A sheltered girl like Qin Su would probably be easy prey for him. Equally logically, Qin Su’s mother would be Extremely Against this marriage. But she’s not going to admit to having been raped when she has the handy excuse of “But he’s the son of a whore!”

Now, what if Qin Su’s maids heard about what their mistress and her suitor were planning? The scandal! The juicy gossip! The extremely hefty tips they could receive in Jinlintai for that piece of intelligence on one of Carp Tower’s most disliked inhabitants!

Qin Su and Jin Guangyao quietly cease their association. But the Jin Sect is really gross and sexist even beyond the standards of the really gross and sexist cultivation world. Who’s going to get the worst of the backlash? Qin Su.

And Jin Zixuan notices. Madam Jin makes SURE he notices, anyway, with how she rants about shamelessness and dishonorability, even if in her case it’s mostly so she can say that she didn’t expect any better from JGY.

Now, Jin Zixuan had been quietly hopeful that he could get some action before the wedding, but he has just gotten a brutal reminder of how insidious Carp Tower gossip is, and he’s humiliated Jiang Yanli enough for a lifetime. He would never even look at her nonconsensually -he’s not his father- but he rather thinks Jiang Cheng would still take him aside for a quiet conversation with Zidian if there was a blowup of this magnitude (probably worse considering their station) with his sister. So he keeps it in his pants.

(Do I know if the timeline works for this? No. Do I care? Also no)

Now, fast forward most of a year past the wedding. The situation is thus:

Wei Wuxian is quietly farming in the Burial Mounds. Nobody has heard of the Yiling Patriarch in months beyond vague rumour-mongering.

Jiang Yanli is only just starting to show a baby bump. No official announcements have been made.

Jiang Cheng absolutely refuses to commit to an attack on the remaining Wens. Without Jiang support for the Jin’s proposal, Lan Xichen feels comfortable mantaining neutrality. Nie Mingjue hates Wens and demonic cultivation, but he has his priorities mostly straight. He won’t launch an offensive unprovoked, and is considering retracting his support of the siege plans out of spite since he Really Fucking Hates both Jin Guangshan and Jin Guangyao.

Jin Guangshan’s patience is wearing thin.

Now, Jin Guangyao knows very well he’s disposable. It’s why he wanted to marry Qin Su in the first place: a bastard son can be quietly (or loudly, depending on what is most convenient) expelled from the Sect once he’s no longer useful. If he was married to a lady from a prominent family that could be taken as an insult to his in-laws. But that plan backfired.

The social capital from his heroic deeds in the war is drying up. The scandal has left him in an even more precarious position, and to the public it looks like not even his sworn brothers are supporting him.

(It legitimately cracks me up that the outside perspective is that Lan Xichen is quietly disapproving of his actions while Nie Mingjue still gives him the benefit of the doubt, based on who’s standing with his clan on the Yiling Patriarch issue)

His assets are: one (1) easily-manipulated, bitter and petty minor sect leader with a disturbing obsession with Lan Wangji and one (1) out of his myriad of siblings (sworn, recognized, unrecognized or otherwise) that still likes and trusts him.

He goes to talk to Lan Xichen.

Here’s when what I like to call “The Tea of Misunderstandings” happens.

JGY, with earnest eyes and a pitiful expression: “Er-ge, I really don’t know what to do about the issue of the Yiling Patriarch. My father is convinced he’s an evil man that is amassing an army, but I haven’t seen you agree with him. Do you think his opinion is unfounded? Do you know anyone who could give an accurate account of his character? Please advise”

LXC, who always errs on the side of thinking the best of everyone’s intentions: “Well, I never had many interactions with Young Master Wei. I really couldn’t say for sure what he’s thinking, even if his chosen cultivation method is deeply troubling. If you want to hear what someone that has fought with him in the past has to say, perhaps you could ask Wangji?”

JGY, internally: “Perfect. Everyone knows Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian can’t stand one another. Er-ge won’t want to risk a large battle unless he’s attacked when his sect suffered so much so recently, but it will be easy to get him onboard once I give him a good excuse”

LXC, internally: “It’s so nice of A-Yao to be worried about doing the right thing, even if it might not align with his sect leader’s opinion. So inspiring! I hope Young Master Wei really is the man Wangji thinks he is, and that Wangji can convince A-Yao to speak to Sect Leader Jin on his behalf. We might be able to solve this situation without bloodshed.”

Remember, at this point in time Lan Wangji is still an Extremely Repressed Gay, and he and Wei Wuxian have had many very public disagreements. You can forgive JGY for not realizing that everybody knows they hate each other in much the same way everybody knows the Yiling Patriarch is amassing a terrifying Wen army.

You may blame Lan Xichen for his word choice when he meant “Someone who fought beside Wei Wuxian in the Sunshot Campaign and other occasions”. Poor jiggy interpreted “Someone who fought AGAINST Wei Wuxian”.

Convincing Su She to curse Lan Wangji is easy. Convincing him that the Yiling Patriarch: 1) Will be pleased about this and welcome him with open arms; 2) Can and will get rid of the curse backlash; 3) Will be easy to fool into revealing his plans so Su She can access glory and reknown in the same way JGY did is easier.

Jin Guangyao is prepared for every outcome: 

If WWX kills Su She on the spot (which seems unlikely), Lan Wangji will still have suffered a direct attack “from the Yiling Patriarch” and Lan Xichen will feel compelled to support Jin Guangshan’s agenda. The Jiang will have no choice but to bow to the other three sects’ will and join. The death of a minor sect leader will get the minor sects foaming at the mouth to mount his head on a pike. Win.

If WWX lets his grudge cloud his judgement and actually welcomes Su She into the Burial Mounds (possible), the movilization to eradicate him and his camp will be even faster. Win.

If WWX tries to get Su She to pass him information and push his own agenda on the cultivation world (most probable, since he’s in desperate need of both information and people speaking for him, even if they come with the ticking time-bomb of a curse), Su She will just report on his forces and condemn him for “forcing him” to curse LWJ, as planned. Win.

Even in the unlikely event that WWX actually can (and the even unlikelier scenario that he does) get rid of the curse mark, JGY can blame Su She for everything and present himself as the one who uncovered their sinister plots so as to not share the glory. Win.

....Or so he’d thought. WWX trussing up Su She like a turkey and presenting them both at the gates of Cloud Recesses in a very public show of concern for LWJ was not something he’d thought he’d need a contingency for.

When LWJ turns out to believe everything WWX tells him even after Su She shockingly doesn’t sell JGY out and they team up to uncover the mystery, jiggy is ready to just throw up his hands in disbelief. That’s just unfair.

(WWX would probably have killed Su She on the spot, because he Cannot Even at the idea of LWJ being the slightest at risk, but Wen Ning was the one who found him and got the spiel about joining them and having cursed LWJ as a mark of his sincerity. It didn’t particularly endear him to Wen Ning either, but WN is smart enough to realize that a moron incompetent enough to get lost on the way to the Burial Mounds, in such a way that they had to split up to find him after he tripped the wards because apparentely?? he can’t feel the strongest fucking focus of resentful energy EVER?? is probably not smart enough to figure out a way to curse Hanguang Jun. Much less through the GusuLan sect’s barriers. So WWX and LWJ investigate to find out who’s the mastermind)

#I don't know if JGY sets his father up to take the fall #and lives to scheme another day #or if both of them bite the dust #but I know he won't risk something with this much of a chance to blow up in his face again #can you tell I hate the trope of masterminds that can predict fucking everything? #JGY's plan is solid #all of them are #but they still have a very good chance of backfiring #canon worked out for him #because he was lucky #he took a lot of very big risks for big rewards #but it could have easily gone the other way #and it amuses me to write an AU where that's exactly what happens #mdzs #JGY #WWX #LWJ #WN #LXC #silverseed writes #my theories #my AUs

[robininthelabyrinth]

Jgy and jyl couple, where meng yao asked for nmj help for courting her in the middle of sunshot campain, could we see the political shenanigans involving jgs being his scummy self and newborn meng ling

World 2 - continuation of Four Worlds (JGY/JYL) - ao3 link

-

“So, uh,” Nie Mingjue said, uncertain and tripping over his tongue a way he never typically did. “What’s your plan?”

Meng Yao blinked at him.

“For courting Mistress Jiang,” Nie Mingjue clarified. “Unless you’ve already reached an agreement..?”

A bowl of soup every night and some pleasant conversation did not, in fact, make for an agreement to marriage, so Meng Yao shook his head.

“Right. So you have a plan, then.”

Meng Yao did not have a plan. Meng Yao did not have anything, nothing but his father’s blood, the weight of his promise to his mother, and his own clever mind; all he had was the sudden and overwhelming conviction that if he let Jiang Yanli go her own way without him that he would never again find a woman who would truly see him as her equal.

There was that girl, Qin Su, that he’d rescued – but that had been artifice, deliberate. He who had access to all of the reports of all the spies in the Sunshot Campaign, who sent out correspondence advising people on what roads were dangerous and which were safe, how could he not know that she would find danger in the route she had chosen? He had deliberately manufactured to rescue her as a means of winning her affection, his eyes all the while fixed on the prize of her surname, her family, which was one of the strongest subsidiary sects of Lanling Jin. They had influence he would need in winning back his name.

And while he had succeeded in his goal – once he had some status, she would fight her father to marry him, he was certain – he still thought he could detect the slightest hint of pity in her eyes. She was a girl in love, claiming that she didn’t care who he was or anything about his past, but how long would that last in the face of sober reality? In the face of struggle, of bitter adversity, of the opposition and scorn of all?

“…would you like help?” Nie Mingjue said, possibly correctly interpreting the blankness on Meng Yao’s face as absolute panic for the first time in the time they had known each other.

“Can you help?” Meng Yao inquired. It seemed unlikely.

“Well, I can write to my brother,” Nie Mingjue said, which sounded far more likely than the infamously frigid Chifeng-zun abruptly developing an expertise in wooing women. “And I’m on good terms with Mistress Jiang personally, so I might be able to provide some insight –”

“Wait,” Meng Yao said, fixing him with a stare. “What do you mean you’re on good terms with her personally?”

Nie Mingjue blinked at him. “Exactly what I said..? We first became acquainted as children, and while we were never close, we were always friendly.”

“But – you only allowed her to stay at our warcamp if she agreed to work! You said you’d kick her out if she wasn’t useful!”

“Naturally,” Nie Mingjue said. “Otherwise she might suspect I pitied her.”

Presumably, Meng Yao reflected, that statement made some amount of sense in Nie Mingjue’s head.

“What does she like, then?” he asked, deciding to focus on the practical. “Cooking, her brothers –”

Befriending people who are so far below her that they aren’t worthy of touching her shoe.

“She’s never had much talent at swordsmanship,” Nie Mingjue said at once, because of course that would be the first thing he would pay attention to. “Not her fault – she’s like Huaisang, born with a weak body, only worse, since it affected her breathing. Too much exertion and she’d turn blue…she used to chew licorice for it, when she was very young; if I recall correctly, she developed a taste for it.”

“Licorice? She likes licorice candy?”

Nie Mingjue nodded.

“She also always enjoyed reading. Poetry, classic texts or light, she wasn’t particular,” he said, brow furrowed in recollection. “She liked puzzles. Was always doing something with her hands – not embroidery, though, not unless she had to. But other things.”

Meng Yao nodded, his quick mind already flooded with ideas, thoughts…he was going to need to be clever about this.

Worse – he was going to need to be honest.

Jiang Yanli deserved it.

-

Meng Yao went to Langya with Nie Mingjue’s recommendation letter in his pocket and the memory of two hands in his, pressing together tightly, and a “yes” that rang in his ears so loudly that he almost didn’t hear the sneers and disdain of the people around him.

His father refused to see him, his peers mocked him, his supervisor stole his achievements and called his mother a whore –

“Yes,” Jiang Yanli whispered in his ear. “Yes, I’ll marry you.”

Meng Yao ignored them all.

He figured out soon enough that Lanling Jin was getting him nowhere, and that without some tremendous achievement, he wouldn’t get the name he had promised his mother he’d have, the one he was starting to doubt he even really wanted.

His supervisor told him he’d be better off dead in the battlefield, implied that he’d see it happen sooner rather than later. Meng Yao considered killing him.

“I would be proud to be your wife.”

Meng Yao did not kill him.

Nie Mingjue might’ve, chasing him out of the battlefield the way he did, eyes red with rage at Jin Guangshan’s insulting pretense – if nothing else, he should have given Nie Mingjue face by accepting the letter, especially given how many battles Nie Mingjue had won for him – but Meng Yao did not.

“I have an idea,” he told Nie Mingjue once he’d had a chance to calm the man down. “You’re going to hate it, so I’m not going to tell you what it is.”

“Be safe,” Nie Mingjue said at once. “Don’t do anything stupid and widow Mistress Jiang before you even marry her.”

Meng Yao smiled, and closed his ears to the sound of Jiang Yanli’s voice. He would need it more than ever, where he was going, but more importantly, if he wanted to succeed, he needed he needed to be the sort of person he was without her.

“I won’t.”

-

It was, Jin Guangyao thought with satisfaction, a perfect strategy.

He had brought down Wen Ruohan with his own hands, saved Nie Mingjue’s life – “What part of ‘I won’t do anything stupid’ means ‘I’m going to go spy in the Nightless City’, you imbecile?” “Sect Leader Nie is happy to see me, then?” “Of course I’m happy to see you! Now get over here and let me break your legs!” – and even swore brotherhood with him and with Lan Xichen.

With such a string of achievements to his name, strong connections to the other Great Sects, and even a personal title, there was no way Jin Guangshan would be able to resist the idea of bringing him into the Jin family to steal some of his reflected glory, even if it meant he’d finally have to give his bastard son the recognition and the name he’d so long refused to grant him.

Oh, his father had gotten his dig in there, calling him Jin Guangyao and situating him firmly outside the line of inheritance for the next generation where he properly belonged, but a name was a name. He was Lanling Jin, now and forever; his promise to his mother fulfilled at long last.

“We will have to find something for you to do, I suppose,” Jin Guangshan said when Jin Guangyao rose to his feet bearing a new name, as though he was trying to place a distant relative into some position as a servant, the minor irritations attendant to the life of a sect leader. “You were a deputy once, weren’t you? Doing all sorts of administrative things. You can arrange the hunt that we will hold to celebrate the end of the war, at Phoenix Mountain.”

“It would be my honor to serve you in this matter, father,” Jin Guangyao said demurely, and even managed to avoid rolling his eyes at the way Jin Guangshan pretended he didn’t know exactly whose deputy he had been, even after Nie Mingjue’s rather impassioned and too-public lecture on the subject back in Langya. “I am pleased to be able to contribute something before I leave the family.”

“Before – what?” Jin Guangshan turned a little purple in his rage, embarrassed in front of all the people who had come to view the naming ceremony and who had all started whispering all at once. His wife, who had been glaring death, suddenly looked far more interested in the proceedings. “Leave? What are you talking about?”

“I’m engaged to be married,” Jin Guangyao said apologetically. “I agreed to marry in – you understand, I didn’t have the Jin surname at the time.”

“You have it now. The girl can marry into our family, instead!”

Jin Guangyao’s smile widened. “I’m so pleased to have your blessing upon my marriage, Father,” he said, bowing his head. A father’s blessing was critical to a proper wedding, so he wanted it to be clear to the entire room that Jin Guangshan had agreed. It would make it more difficult for him to recant later. “But her family is small, her parents and much of her sect killed in the war, and she has only one brother – I promised her that I would marry in to ensure that her parents’ legacy lives on, even if only as the collateral branch.”

“It does you credit to respect your future bride in such a manner,” Madame Jin said before Jin Guangshan could speak. Jin Guangyao had counted on her leaping to his aid: she must think that it was in her best interest that the one bastard that Jin Guangshan had finally legitimatized be immediately rendered utterly ineligible for inheriting the Jin sect, and that nothing else mattered. Her open support now would make it more difficult for her to recant later, too, when she discovered that he was foiling her plans for her own son’s marriage. “Quite romantic, even. It warms my heart to see such faithful love.”

Jin Guangshan’s face went even more purple. To be criticized in public like that – only Madame Jin could accomplish such a feat.

Jin Guangyao saluted and bowed deeply to them both once again. “Father and Mother honor me too much. With your approval, I will arrange the Phoenix Mountain hunt as a proud member of the Jin clan and leave the family to marry into my beloved’s family on the first auspicious date thereafter.”

“Fine,” Jin Guangshan said, his lip twisting into a sneer. He couldn’t understand why anyone would want to be part of Lanling Jin and then leave it behind – he probably expected Jin Guangyao to stay and beg for scraps of attention, to run around doing anything he wished, to scheme for an inheritance he would always be denied. He might not have been wrong, in another life where that was Jin Guangyao’s only route to power – he’d always been ambitious, and often a little too optimistic with it. “Fine. You are, after all, my son, and to marry you will be a great honor for whichever family you choose. We’ll pay for your wedding, and even endower you as if you were a bride worthy of the family you marry into – it is the least that we can do, for the great honor that you have brought to Lanling Jin.”

At least his father remembered that he’d made a contribution, Jin Guangyao thought, and bowed again. It was an insult to call it a dowry, as if Jin Guangyao was a woman, instead of simply bestowing it on him outright as a gift, and even that pathetic gesture was only being made because his father knew they were in public, surrounded by the sect leaders of the cultivation world that he wanted to impress. And even then, even then, he had still tried to be clever, to say he would only make Jin Guangyao equal to the family he married into.

No doubt he expected that the only family that would take him when he was Meng Yao was some bunch of nobodies, and that the wedding would therefore be small, cheap, and uninteresting, just as he no doubt thought Jin Guangyao deserved.

He was doomed to disappointment.

“Congratulations, brother,” Jin Zixuan said, and maybe even meant it. “Who is your intended bride?”

Jin Guangyao savored the moment.

“Mistress Jiang, of Yunmeng Jiang,” he said, and watched Jin Guangshan’s face go pale, Madame Jin’s twist in abrupt rage, Jin Zixuan’s eyes go wide in sudden envy.

There were those that said the best revenge was living well, and they had something of a point, only they had left out a bit.

The best revenge was living well – and rubbing your enemies’ faces in it.

#mdzs #jin guangyao #nie mingjue #jiang yanli #jin guangshan #my fic #my fics #sorry you don't get meng ling #but you get politics? #Anonymous

[izartn]

MDZS JGY fic promt

I’m thinking about Meng Yao/Jin Guangyao and I think I would love to read a fic of him snapping in the opposite direction of his desperate grab for power and respect from his shit father. We know, thanks to JGS gruesome murder that at some point, after already being a shitty human doing murdery things, JGY snapped hard and said: “if i’m gonna do the shitty things of running this sect i’ll do them for myself and fuck you to death”. Quite literally. 

So I’d like to imagine a world where he, like, not necessary becomes a much better person; I dunno about the JZX and WWX kill plot, or about NMJ. I think he’s very set in his auto-preservating self-beneficing ways, and if you don’t really work well with that part of his chara then he’s not JGY anymore. 

But instead of being, I’ll become the highest in the cultivation world, so i will be finally respected and listened to (uhm, didnt’ work especially well did it? they never let him forget his mother profession when it was his father who was the absolute worst) he decides that while cultivation is still something to aspire to -can’t forget about his mother dying dream, also longer life and health benefits + being a hero, doing the decent thing- he realises the cultivation sect system as it is horrible. 

He was in the middle of the war, he saw it from both sides. He then went to low to high but still a servant. And it’s always blood what counts. He sees what happens to his other bastard brothers, to WWX when he decides enough is enough, and how he himself is still treated by his Sect despite his intelligence and abilities. And instead of trying to take refuge in the system, he is a bit more self-aware or inquiring; maybe he is more idealistic in some ways? But still oh so bitter, and decides to destroy the system from within.

You know what? Do it so he still rises to Leader of the Jin Sect (without prostitutes murdering and necrophilia; he is now more on the side of the common, so maybe he gets the help of Sisi or someone he knows to aid him poison his father and after he gets them a nice reward and packs them to a new life in Japan or something. Or he simply uses another subtle method without intermediaries or with unaware ones, he is certainly able of doing that when he isnt being an ironic murderer shit.) because it’ll serve him, and to be the leader responsible of making sure the so estimated Jin blood is disposesed will make him smug pleased. To slowly gain power and bit by bit erase the division between the noble clans and people who learn simply bcs of talent, scouting youngsters witht the excuse of replenishing the clans after the war and quiting the idiots nobles from their spoiled positions. 

Hell you can even make LXC and NMJ (did he died before or after JGY becomes Sect Leader? Well if he is still alive, NHS doesn’t destroy him, but then WWX doesn’t come back. If he dies before, then the vengeance is still in play, but it’ll be even more fraughted bcs now JGY goals and methods are a lot more morally grey and watching WWX and LWJ confront that would be super interesting O-O), you can make them see those policies and be like, oh sure, that’s a good thing you’re doing A-yao. But also conflict with their positions in the nobility system, as time pases and JGY subtly passes more changes and brings to ruin those sect leaders more entrenched in the old ways and abusing of their people.

 Programs for literacy, for the spread of knowledge and the civil use of cultivation techniques with the excuse of avoiding beforehand the formation of ghosts and resentment appealing to the lazy nature of the rich while eliminating bit by bit the necessity of their existence, like boiling a frog, the creation of the watchtowers still fits nicely and we know in canon he faced oppposition there so here it’s more important still, even more so Su She I think, will be elated with this turn of events and even more loyal lmao if JGY sells it well and JGY sells his ideas really well. 

Maybe he helps XXC and SL bcs it’s in his interest they find success although he finds them naive; but JGY has a canon soft spot for people who treat him well regardless of his common born status, so. Maybe he intercedes with XY and convinces him to work with him taking out nobles reasonably (I bet XY will like that), and manages to avoid somehow XY elaborated revenge on SL and XXC? or executes him when he is too much of a wild card, but we know how that ended in canon... The best bet is making XY see on his own best interest to help in JGY vision but that’s well. almost crack fic lmao. 

OH! Maybe he finds XY before the massacre of the Chang clan bcs he is searching for someone to help him above table and gets to him by offering a more subtle but still suitable appropriate revenge with the pro bonus of getting to do the same to others after and access to WWX manuscripts. You know this has a much higher chance of working, let’s go with this scenario. So he keeps XY out of his father reach, when he is searching for someone to gain control of the stygian seal and wen ning. Yeah, this will appeal immensely to JGY xD

You know, and JGY being beloved by the people, and having more than a facade of being just or fair, but proving it although it isn't in the interest of the nobles. And as he is politics savvy, although with more effort he could certainly make it so he avoids assassinations or walking in a minefield like wwx etc. 

Depending on the NMJ situation... You could make it so NMJ doesn’t die and then they enter a stalemate of grudging respect bcs JGY wants more an ally in swaying people for his cause than his revenge, although he sure could make non lethal things to inconvenience NMJ lol. And NHS as sect leader wouldn’t have the same power to his decisions and reach, no matter if he is more manipulable; after all isn’t NHS a pampered noble in JGY eyes? Who could be sure if he even would follow JGY anyways... 

And you could give it different endings depending on the development of JGY: a success where he gets to the point were factually the sects aren’t bloods based anymore, just a few like the lan (those traditionalists lol) resisting an unavoidable wave of change taht comes for everybody, and the money doesn’t flow in their pockets like a river to the ocean but instead it goes back to the people. 

You could make it so it’s a partial success bcs JGY is still himself and does more than a few morally grey things that come to light with the NMJ murder reveal, but his changes linger and the common people plus others of the same ideal now trained and in process of being cultivators won’t let themselves be cowered by the awful nobility -another big conflict breeding, and maybe it won’t be successful but people have long memories and books and the new ideals of equality would spread regardless, so it would start again and again each time a bit better-. I think WWX POV in this case would be delicious omg, LXC conflict even more pointed. This would be, I think the more realistic and interesting to write take on the idea. Iand you now, I’m in favor of a novel setting and characterization, but to make it more painful, use the 16 gap of the show and nothing else (i haven’t see the show beyond the first episodes bcs i couldn’t take it lol)  so JGY has more time to make changes. 

You could make a downer ending (this I wouldn’t like lmao, but it’s there) so that shows the cruelty and inability of making changes to something so integrated and supported by itself, that JGY loses much to his revenge he takes more and more radical actions that come back to bit his ass with NMJ and JGS murder revelation. I think XY in here would be appropriate, in an antagonist role as in MDZS. But it still has an impact; JGY’s life, despite his faults was still more inspirational, made better impact than his canon self. Make it poetically tragic and a comment on the futility of trying to change society by oneself, but find beauty in the attempt itself which has created community, which will in the future do the true work of overthrowing the yokes of the high ups, educating and helping each other in their messy human lives.

All this ending, and JL conflict, who at this point has learnt much at his uncle JGY side, who has decided to (dunno about marrying QS and A-Song’s death. depending on your take and ending it’ll have different impact) go on with his labor bc he sees the good on it and swears to not be like the worst of JGY. A legacy he can reconcile with himself thanks too, to the experience of meeting WWX. JL is in a more fraught position with JC in this verse, I think, bc for one, he is more mature/not so spoiled and that would make JC glad, but his ideas are at the same time understable and anatema to JC who puts so much of his life on honoring the clan on making sure the Jiang carry on and his name isn’t forgotten but who recruited from nothing during the war. Who sees the danger in alienating the powers of the cultivation sects bc he saw what it did to WWX and he believes in protecting his own and to hell with the rest. 

So very interesting!!! 

You could spin so many takes from this, it’d be so fascinating and satisfying. I’d love to see the chara of JGY developed in this direction, bcs he has so much potential to waste it in so petty goals. His ambition is certainly big enough to believe he will damn well do a silent revolution well. 

Just, using the classics to argue for equality and education and a good life even if you’re a peasant, using the cultivation basis and its suppose use to better oneself and the world in making a point of avoiding wars and violent retribution (to the public, he’s still a bit of an hypocrit bcs it serves him well to have a stick with which to beat his enemies lmao) and instead use diplomacy and a sort of rehabilitation or service thing. Because those ideas are there, in the different clasics and schools of thought (not confucianism, not as much) it’s just that the nobles and high scholars were never interested and used them to argue for a sort of natural hierarchy were they’re in top. 

 Let JGY create a new school of thought, and LXC and others seeing the merit on it. JGY has the reach and the intelligence and the ability. 

The best revenge is living well and destroying the system which allowed the other to harm you, the ideas, the means. Create a fantasy fulfillment ^^

#meng yao #jin guangyao #mdzs #cql #the untamed #i think tv folks will appreciate this #meta #writing prompt

[imaginaryelle]

oh no lxc :( him having to go through nmj's alone i never thought about it.... do you think one of the reasons jgy killed nmj at that time so lxc would only have him to turn to or do you think that was a 'fortuitous' by product that jgy could take advantage?

;_; Lan Xichen needs hugs okay.

I think Jin Guangyao killed Nie Mingjue for lots of reasons, some personal, some political, and Lan Xichen sort of falls in the middle on that. Nie Mingjue is an obstacle to many goals; he stands opposed to Jin Guangshan’s bid at creating (and occupying) the Chief Cultivator position, and he’s violently opposed to demonic cultivation (which the Jins started experimenting with pretty much immediately after Wei Wuxian died), and particularly to the continued existence of Xue Yang (I guess genocide-as-revenge is only okay if it’s NMJ doing it?). He also both knows some sketchy information about Jin Guangyao’s capacity for revenge and duplicity and personally insults him in what’s probably the worst way Jin Guangyao can imagine coming from someone not his father. So his fate is already sealed: his death removes a lot of problems with a side benefit of pleasing Jin Guangshan, which Jin Guangyao is still pretty into! According to @thewickling​‘s fantastic timeline work, Nie Mingjue dies earlier the same year Jin Guangyao marries Qin Su, so it’s actually entirely possible that he’s planning his wedding (his last real attempt a currying his father’s favor and recognition) while killing his sworn brother. Which I’m sure is another doozy for Lan Xichen to deal with, twelve years later, on top of the whole incest thing. That wedding, Jin Rusong’s birth and the finalization of Cloud Recesses’ rebuilding are like, the only nominally fun or happy things that happen for three years after the ambush at the Qiongqi path, and only one of those is still happy in retrospect, and even that  is exactly what prevented Lan Xichen from playing Clarity for Nie Mingjue himself.

It’s a bad time.

This got a bit longer than anticipated, so, cut.

Back to the question: I don’t think drawing Lan Xichen in even closer was anywhere near the top of the “reasons Nie Mingjue must die” list for Jin Guangyao when he first set out to murder, and especially not at the particular time he did it--a probable side benefit at most--but. But. Lan Xichen does provide the method. He gives Jin Guangyao a perfect excuse to be in Nie Mingjue’s presence, often and without anyone else being present. He gives him Clarity, and, through the jade pass token and access to the Lan library, the means to alter it and twist its purpose. It was very, very nearly a perfect crime, and Lan Xichen provided everything necessary to make it happen. I have to wonder if, while he was integrating those scores, or practicing the new version of the song, Jin Guangyao thought about how hard he was going to need to twist Lan Xichen’s grief in order to hide that involvement. To make sure no suspicion ever fell on him, and to make sure he would ever and always be Lan Xichen’s confidant, aware of even the remotest chance of his machination being discovered. It must have occurred to him.

So yeah, I think it was, as you say, fortuitous, that it would be even easier than usual to isolate Lan Xichen and control his perceptions of Jin Guangyao during the time that he was most likely to be searching for answers. It’s even possible that this particular bit of fortuitousness works in Nie Huaisang’s favor as well: if Jin Guangyao is focused on Lan Xichen, sitting with him in his grief and watching him for signs of suspicion, he has less time to keep an eye on Nie Huaisang. After all, Nie Mingjue’s brother has fewer puzzle pieces to work with, if any, but Lan Xichen has almost almost all of them, if he had a remotely suspicious mind. But he doesn’t. Instead he is fair-minded almost to a fault.

For what it’s worth, I do think Jin Guangyao really does value his friendship. I think he probably doesn’t have to pretend too hard at comforting Lan Xichen, even if he’s entirely pretending his own grief. That that comfort, and friendship, and continuation of the bond they formed while Lan Xichen could literally trust no one else in the world also winds even tighter because Jin Guangyao might be the only person left who Lan Xichen allows himself to cry in front of ... fortuitous side benefits abound. Not everything is planned in full; sometimes there’s just a hook that’s too tempting for a habitual liar not to use.

#lan xichen #jin guangyao #mo dao zu shi #mdzs meta #alex writes meta #Anonymous