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xiyao-feels · 3 years

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Hi! May I ask a The Untamed question: Why does Meng Yao return the jade pass? What is it and why is it important? Lan Xichen seemed a bit upset, surprised but also resigned to it simultaneously.

Hi! So—/why/ Jin Guangyao returns the jade pass is an interesting question, and there are various different opinions on the matter. I think it's best if I start with the second part of your question: what is it and why is it important?

The Lan use the jade passes as a security measure; you need one to get in and out of CR. JGY has a pass which previously allowed him access to CR, but LXC changed it; this time, when he came, it didn't allow him in.

I think it's worth taking a fuller look at the jade passes, which in this case means looking at MDZS.

We first see them, I believe, in chapter 11. In MDZS, WWX a) believes LWJ hates him and b) doesn't realize LWJ has recognized him. He pitches a fit outside the gates of CR because he doesn't want to go inside, because without a jade token that allows you in and out, he won't be able to leave:

If he was dragged inside, it would be extremely difficult for him to come outside again. Back then, when he came to study, all of the disciples were given a jade token for passage. Only with the token, would a person be able to enter and leave freely, or else they couldn’t pass through the protective barrier of the Cloud Recesses. After ten years had passed, the security could only have gotten stricter, instead of looser.

After he's inside, he tries to see if he could escape without the token, but no dice:

Lan WangJi went to see his uncle to discuss serious matters, while Wei WuXian was pushed into the room. Right after Lan WangJi left, Wei WuXian also went outside. He strolled around the Cloud Recesses, and found that, as he had expected, without the jade token for passage, even if he climbed up the white walls of a few zhangs’ height, he would be immediately flung off by the barrier, attracting the attentions of the nearby patrolmen at once.

In chapter 65, we see that LWJ is able to detect when someone tried to come through the wards without one:

Wei WuXian slept sometime later. He was asleep until early morning when he suddenly woke up. With a shiver, he crawled forward and looked up. Lan WangJi’s was still dressed, sword was on his back. As he took back the hand that he had put on Wei WuXian’s shoulder, he stared at a white object within his palm, “We have an uninvited guest.”

Wei WuXian squinted to see. The object was the GusuLan Sect’s jade token of passage. He could recall that Lan WangJi’s token was a very high level, able to alert him if others intruded over the barrier of the GusuLan Sect.

This was JGY coming, the very same trip he returns the jade token, because now it's no longer working. WWX concludes that LWJ modified its access at some point in the last couple of days:

Wei WuXian understood now. Since ZeWu-Jun and LianFang-Zun had quite a good relationship, Lan XiChen had given Jin GuangYao a token of passage as well so that he could visit freely. However, it was likely that within the past few days he had either edited the prohibitions of the Cloud Recesses’ barrier or retracted the permission of Jin GuangYao’s token of passage. When Jin GuangYao came to visit, he was refused permission to enter, and thus he voluntarily returned the token.

In chapter 119, LWJ tells WWX that the jade token he gave him can also be used to withdraw money when he needs it:

Wei WuXian, “[…] Oh, right. HanGuang-Jun, I’m out of money. Give me a bit more, won’t you?”

Lan WangJi, “Simply take the jade token to withdraw the money.”

Wei WuXian let out a muffled laugh, “Apart from letting me in and out of the barrier, that jade token you gave me… can also let me draw money?”

“Yes.”

Though I very much doubt that Jin Guangyao ever used it for that.

I can't find reference to anyone other than JGY and WWX being given tokens permanently (like, aside from the visiting disciples), so only Jin Guangyao who didn't live among the Lan. (Although since the damn tokens aren't referred to by a single consistent name, I could be missing something.)

See also this bit in ch 80, from the second siege:

Wei WuXian laughed, “Who said that you have to go inside the Room of Forbidden Books? Wouldn’t it be fine as long as your master can go in at will? The methods of tampering with the sheet music—he was probably also the one who taught you that, right?”

A person of power free to travel in and out of the Cloud Recesses at will. There was no need to say out loud whom Su She’s master was. Everyone knew—it could only be LianFang-Zun!

It's not actually totally clear to me how much of this carries into CQL canon. For example, we don't have the WWX trying to escape from CR plotline in CQL, so from what I remember I don't think we see him testing the wards and being flung off the walls. And more than that: in CQL we don't get the scene where LWJ detects JGY's visit through his own token, meaning Wangxian's presence during the meeting comes across more as something LXC deliberately set up. I think you could read it in if you really wanted, but it's definitely reading against the text.

(Incidentally, to me in CQL LXC doesn't seem surprised when JGY puts the pass on the table, but I think he very much is surprised when JGY says I'm returning it to you; that's not the direction he was expecting this to go. Episode 43, 31:17-31:37, if you want to check yourself.)

Okay, so, now we have all the context. Why does Jin Guangyao return the jade pass? He says that it's because it stopped working, sure, fine—but why did it not working mean he returned it?

To the best of my knowledge—though as ever I could be wrong—we don't get any more information than that in the text, which means it's a matter for meta and speculation. This is where I'd usually tell you what I think and why, except... honestly, I'm not sure. I haven't yet settled on something that feels right to me.

I've seen the ideas that he was distancing himself, or that he was reacting as though it was a complete rejection—it's certainly true that being completely rejected is his usual experience, see NMJ and QS. I can follow the logic, but it doesn't quite work for me? First because it's followed by his reassuring LXC on the subject of LWJ's reputation and the possibility of CR being searched, and then inviting LXC to Carp Tower for a conference about the Burial Mounds, but also...hmmm. Retreating like that is—not really how he usually operates? You see it with NMJ, you see it with QS—he keeps reaching out, he keeps trying to explain himself. In MDZS he stops after the stairs, but at that point he's very thoroughly done with NMJ and I think we can agree he's not there with LXC; in CQL he keeps trying even after he's decided NMJ has to go. Now it's true QS literally just killed herself! so he might not be reacting as usual and all. But...mmm, I don't know. He says it himself (ch 106): “I can’t help it. To seek pity even after doing all the bad things—that’s the kind of person I am.”

Okay, so why the heck /does/ he do it? Welllll...it could be practical considerations—maybe it would be a risk for the Lan if the token got into the hands of an enemy, say, and he's not sure he'll be able to protect it. But honestly that's not very satisfying, and there doesn't seem to be any evidence in the text that I can remember? So I think it makes sense to look elsewhere.

Maybe he actually is trying to respect LXC's boundaries, especially since they don't have time to hash this out. Maybe he figures that—well, we don't know exactly how the second siege would have played out without Wangxian's intervention, but it seems pretty likely that it would have involved damaging the Lan, which is LXC's care and to whom until now JGY has been the staunchest of allies; a way of acknowledging the damage he's doing, even if it won't be understood until later. Maybe he's trying to send a message to LXC: shit is going down, are you in or out? Maybe he's trying to knock LXC off balance; LXC certainly seems off balance for the conversation, reacting rather than acting. Maybe it's to distance LXC from him in like, the potential eyes of the crowd; they've been close and public allies for so long, and now he's trying to help make sure LXC doesn't he pulled down with him if he goes down. Maybe it's a farewell gesture—not so much to LXC, but to the life he's been living, to the precise shape of relationship they had. Maybe it's giving LXC something safe to remember him by—a token, but not something it will look weird if LXC keeps, because he still hopes that LXC will want to remember him. Maybe it's meant as a reminder of the help he has given the Lan. I don't know! I don't know. I do at some point want to sit with the text and seriously work this out, but I also want to get this out for you, anon, so you actually have the information you asked for XP

I think right now I'm leaning towards—some combination of farewell to this part of the life he's been living and the shape of his relationship with LXC (but not saying farewell to /any/ relationship with LXC), and—giving LXC a token of that time. But right now I'm just not sure.

(MDZS quotes all taken from the ER translation)

#a gentle warmth filling the deepest of needs #more than one tag could contain #the best of men #long meta

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minmotl · 3 years

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Ch. 69: Sui Zhou Touches Tang Fan’s Lips As They Sleep On The Same Bed

Context: Continues from Chapter 68. Tang Fan, Sui Zhou and the other men are headed back to the Imperial City and Tang Fan knows that his punishment for letting Yin Yuan Hua get killed will be severe. Sui Zhou tries to help him but is helpless to do so, and Tang Fan plans for him instead, touching and warming the man’s heart.

*Note: Liang Wen Hua is Yin Yuan Hua’s direct supervisor and the both of them have been trying to sabotage Tang Fan for the longest time.

Introduction Post | Masterpost

—

Highlights under the cut

Tang Fan smiles slightly, and then finds a chair next to the bed to sit down on. The red swelling on his face has already faded, so this action naturally looks elegant.

“What do you think will happen?” he asks in return, wanting to hear his good friend’s thoughts.

Sui Zhou is highly skilled in martial arts and has a firm, strong body, so even after sustaining severe injuries, now that he has laid down for so many days he is more or less recovered. Now, as he sits leaning against the side of the wall and chats with his good friend, this is instead another type of rest.

Listening to Tang Fan’s words, he then says sombrely, “A lot of people already think that you are in the Zhang Ying’s camp, but from what I can see, Wan An has been wanting to switch him out and so he definitely won’t sit in the ministerial position for long. Once he leaves, you’ll have to face Liang Wen Hua on your own, but in today’s court there are a few different parties that are competing fiercely with each other. Although Liang Wen Hua and the Chief Minister Wan An are close, but Liu Xu and Liu Ji do not look upon Wan An favourably, you still have a chance.”

The bunch of them have stayed in Gong County for a month, and at this point, Sui Zhou still does not know that Zhang Ying has been assigned to Nanjing, and also has no idea how accurate his premonition is.

“So what you mean is, I should depend on Liu Xu or Liu Ji?” Tang Fan asks.

Sui Zhou nods, “In the internal courts, today’s leading three elders, aside from Wan An, are Liu Xu and Liu Ji, these two men. Liu Xu is righteous and blunt, while Liu Ji is used to patronising others, and they are certainly no easy people to get along with. However, Liu Xu is the Emperor’s teacher and even he has to address the man as Dong Liu-xiansheng. The respect he has for the man is apparent. As for Liu Xu himself, he can appreciate capable young officials, so if you can gain his protection, you will not need to be afraid of Liang Wen Hua.”

And within the internal courts, although Liu Xu tends to be arrogant, compared to others, his personality can be considered one of the better ones. Moreover, he often advises the Emperor to work hard and serve his people. The only thing is, Liu Xu has a bad temper and likes to lecture others. If he sees someone he does not like, no matter if that person has done something good or bad, he will still lecture them from a higher moral ground. This has garnered the resentment of others, and so his relationship with others in court is not good. He tends to spread rumours to the disadvantage of others, which is why he, Wan An and Liu Ji are discussed together in the same sitting.

***

Tang Fan only laughs bitterly at his words, “This is a good solution, but on me, this doesn’t really work.”

Sui Zhou frowns, “Why?”

“My teacher and Liu Xu hold old grudges against each other, detesting one another. They cannot resist but want to triumph over the other. With Liu Xu’s character, do you think it’s possible for him to protect his enemy’s student?”

“There is deep enmity between them?” Sui Zhou asks.

Tang Fan, “Not quite to that extent, but you are also well aware that the both of them have bad tempers and believe in that they know best. You know this, it is easy to determine who the winner is in a physical fight, but between scholars, it is challenging to see who wins. I am not certain how their conflict came to be, but in any case, I once saw my teacher throw water from a cup at Liu Xu with my own eyes, and he said that Liu Xu is just as this water, that he is dirty and hard to deal with.”

Sui Zhou, “…”

Well, since they have already come to blows, it is probably impossible for them to become friends in this lifetime. And Tang Fan, as Qiu Jun’s student, if he approached the man, judging by Liu Xu’s personality, it is not difficult to imagine how Tang Fan will be humiliated as a result.

This method indeed will not work. When he thinks about this, Sui Zhou too is a little helpless.

He is the zhenfushi in charge of the Northern Administrative Court, and although the official hat he wears on the top of his head is Rank Five qianhu only, the rank he has when compared to civil officials of the same rank is very different. Not only do Rank Five civil officials need to give way to him, even the seasoned elders in the internal court will have to stop and exchange greetings with him when they see Sui-zhenfushi.

Moreover, he is also related to Empress Dowager Zhou, while the Emperor trusts him immensely. For him to keep progressing upwards is not a difficult thing.

And yet, for Sui-zhenfushi who holds so much power, he is unable to do anything for his good friend’s career problems. On the surface, it seems that this is due to the entirely differently systems that govern the promotions for Embroidered Uniform Guards and civil officials.

However, Sui Zhou believes that this is the result of him not being powerful and strong enough. If he had the power and authority that someone like Grand Tutor Sun Ji Zong has now, even if Liang Wen Hua wanted to sabotage Tang Fan, he would have to reconsider and they would not be stuck in this situation where they can only react to changes.

Tang Fan sees his frustration and instead comforts him, “You do not need to be like this. I know you are doing this for my own good but whether or not I continue to be an official, this is not under yours or my control. I have already done my best at the things I need to do and have no regrets. You don’t have to worry about things that will happen in the future. We should live in the present, and there will always be things to worry about tomorrow!”

Sui Zhou hears this and does not know if he should be reassured by how open-minded Tang Fan is, or worried that he is so nonchalant.

Then again, if Tang Fan was the the type of official that went after status and power, focusing only on promotions, then the both of them would unlikely have any common interests or views, or become good friends.

It is commonly said that there is a everything happens for a reason, and if you lose something you will also gain something. Although it is impossible for everything to go smoothly, but they headed into Marquis Gong’s tomb, meet bloodthirsty, merciless and ferocious tomb-guarding beasts and originally thinking that they would have to die down there, and they ended up returning safely. This is already a fortunate thing; hey really should not ask for too much.

In any case, he has plenty of savings and when it comes to that, Sui Zhou can definitely afford to take care of him. All he has to do is think of ways to make Tang Fan stay.

Sui Zhou does not realise that unconsciously, he has already been influenced by Tang Fan’s casual, broad-minded attitude. The way he used to regard life in a strict and narrow manner is also slowly changing.

If it was before, he might have gotten angry at Tang Fan’s lack of ambition and competitive drive, and the way he does not seem to want to work with anyone else, but right now, he instead understands Tang Fan and acknowledges his friend’s perspective towards life.

This is because Sui Zhou knows that it is not that Tang Fan does not want to progress upwards, that he doesn’t work hard. It is that he has already done his best within the limitations of his capabilities, and he does not want to force things. He prefers to let things come as they will - he works with the determination of wanting to work towards maintaining peace in this world, but as a person, he is happy being himself and will deal with things when they happen.

To be able to be friends with him is the other person’s fortune.

“You’re right,” Sui Zhou’s mouth curves upwards, and his heart eases.

He does not know when it started; when he looks at this person and thinks about him, his eyes lose the cold and hard edge usually present when he looks at others, and what’s left behind is a light layer of happiness.

***

“Guang Chuan, after we head back, you better make a trip to Yuan-zhenfushi’s. He has been with the Embroidered Uniform Guards for so many years and though he does not think much of power and status, he is definitely not someone who will let others step on him. Since he let you command the whole of the Northern Administrative Court, this means that he obviously is impressed with your abilities and is intent on making you his successor. If you can obtain his complete approval and you absorb all of Yuan Bin’s power and connections, then even if Wan Tong returns, he will not be able to touch you easily. At that point you would control the Northern Administrative Court firmly, and naturally will not be afraid of Wan Tong.”

“And,” Tang Fan sits on the bed and bends at the waist to remove his shoes and socks, then hugs the covers and lies on the bed as he plans for Sui Zhou, “You are Empress Dowager Zhou’s grandnephew and the trust that the Emperor has for you is not lesser than the trust he has for Wan Tong. After you return, you must remember two things and you will be able to stand firmly before the Emperor. No matter how Wan Tong tries to sabotage you, he will not be able to do anything to you.”

Sui Zhou raises an eyebrow, “I’m all ears.”

“Firstly, no matter what the Emperor wants to do, you must not oppose him. If he asks for your opinion, you must not respond. Whatever he says, you do, unless it clashes with your principles. Secondly, after Wan Tong drags Yuan Bin down, you must ask for leniency for Yuan Bin. If the Emperor asks you for a reason, you should say that you are willing to serve him as Yuan Wen served the previous Emperor. Not only will the Emperor not blame you if you say this, but he will also pardon Yuan Bin, and be closer to you as well.”

The Cheng Hua Emperor has plenty of bad habits but at the same time, he is also rather soft-hearted and nostalgic. However, he is also an Emperor and emperors do not prefer their subjects to oppose them day in and out. With this type of personality, the Emperor is indeed a very contradictory person.

Although Tang Fan has only seen the Emperor in person a few times, from the descriptions of people who often interact with him such as Sui Zhou and Wang Zhi, it is not difficult to deduce the Emperor’s character.

What he has just said to Sui Zhou can be regarded as him guessing at the Emperor’s thoughts and this is taboo. If it wasn’t someone like Sui Zhou who he is this close to, Tang Fan will definitely not say any of this.

Sui Zhou naturally understands and his heart warms as he enjoys this treatment.

“I understand, thank you.”

“Between you and I, is there any need for thanks?” Tang Fan smiles.

At night, Tang Fan sleeps rather restfully and these problems have obviously not affected his mood.

Sui Zhou, however, is unable to sleep.

Tang Fan took the initiative and asked to sleep on the inside so that he would not accidentally press on Sui Zhou’s injuries if he tosses and turns. He is lying on his side and his back is almost pressed entirely against the wall. Sui Zhou feels uncomfortable on his behalf just looking at him, but Tang Fan is still able to descend into his dreams.

Sui Zhou’s gaze is sombre and he looks quietly at Tang Fan for a long while, then reaches out to touch that handsome face.

His fingers land on the other’s lips, but he only lightly caresses for a moment. The touch is not made out of lust or want, only respect and sincerity.

Before he met Tang Fan, Sui Zhou was actually incredibly lonely inside.

The Sui family members are not able to understand why Sui Zhou entered the Embroidered Uniform Guards, and in their eyes, Sui Zhou should have emulated his older brother, working hard at the imperial examinations, helping the family to forge a path of honour which will allow them to get rid of the reputation that says they relied on their external relatives for status. Although the authority the Embroidered Uniform Guards wield is great, they have a terrible reputation as well. If he had received an empty title, that’s one thing, but being called a dog to the imperial court, what is this?

However, Sui Zhou does not need anyone to understand him. He is like a single, long wolf, moving forward on a path he has set his heart on.

And then he met Tang Fan.

A person who genuinely wants to help him to plan and strategise for the future.

To be able to attain such a soulmate, what more can he ask for?

He can only reciprocate with everything he has.

The bright moonlight peeps in through the window and lands on Tang Fan’s face. This illuminates his beauty and makes him look like an immortal, unlike a common man.

Suddenly, Deity Tang moves his lips, as if saying something.

Sui Zhou’s curiosity is piqued and he moves closer, but he ends up hearing Tang Fan mumble, “Crab roe… tofu soup…”

Sui Zhou, “…”

Tang-daren’s imposing and noble image has been shattered.

===

Notes:

*今朝有酒今朝醉，明日愁来明日愁 - An idiom that literally translates to ‘I will get drink on alcohol today, and worry about tomorrow when tomorrows comes.” Means to live in the present and worry about things when they happen rather than in advance.

#tsomd #cheng hua shi si nian #cheng hua's fourteenth year #the sleuth of ming dynasty #成化十四年 #tsomd novel #fanzhou #tang fan #sui zhou #suitang #translations #so romantic sui zhou!!!!!

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rosethornewrites · 4 years

Text

Fic: the thread may stretch or tangle but it will never break, ch. 4

Characters: Lán Zhàn | Lán Wàngjī, Wèi Yīng | Wèi Wúxiàn, Wēn Qíng, Wēn Níng | Wēn Qiónglín, Granny Wēn, Lán Yuàn | Lán Sīzhuī

Additional Tags: Pre-Slash, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Secrets, Crying, Masks, Soulmates, Truth, Self-Esteem Issues, Regret, It was supposed to be a one-shot, Fix-It, Eventual Relationships, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, wwx needs a hug, Nightmares, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Filial Piety

Summary: Lan WangJi ruminates on his decision, and on filial piety.

Note: I was writing and lwj just decided to have a 400-word internal monologue about it. He’s stubborn af. But given that Lan WangJi’s decision here (and actually Wei WuXian’s in canon as well) controvert filial piety, it bears exploration as to the logic of why he might abandon it now. I also believe it's a very important element to the series as a whole. So I researched it, not that I necessarily did it justice or can fully understand it. I have feelings about the concept of filial piety, but I’m also white, and I have no right to pass judgment on a culture not my own. I apologize for any possible cultural insensitivity.

AO3 link

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3

---------

Despite getting to sleep past hai shi, Lan WangJi still wakes at mao shi out of habit. He had offered Wei Ying the softer bedroll, arguing he deserved the comfort, and had been rebuffed. He hadn’t been particularly surprised; Wei Ying had already been snippy following the nightmare, his vulnerability on display, and being subtly bullied when both Wen QiongLin and Lan WangJi kept refilling his bowl and staring at him until he ate more likely didn’t help his mood.

Wei Ying is curled on his side on the stone ‘bed,’ still wrapped in the warmer robe, the threadbare blanket over him. He at least seems to be sleeping soundly.

He stows his bedroll back in the qiankun pouch, but before he leaves the cave, he drapes the blanket from his bedroll over him to ensure his comfort. Wei Ying will likely reproach him later, but he hates that he’s left him to suffer alone so long. If he’s bothered by being taken care of, so be it.

Lan WangJi can only hope the funds he gave Wen Qing can ease the conditions here for everyone, including his ever-stubborn zhiji. At the least, blankets. Perhaps the materials to build proper beds. Perhaps, once XiChen sees what LanlingJin has lied about, perhaps much more can be done. He dares to hope.

He meditates outside the cave entrance as the sky lightens on the horizon, finishing when the first rays of the rising sun hit his face. The Wens were rising, used to farm life tethered to the sun by now.

The elderly woman caring for a-Yuan motions to him to follow to the communal area to break his fast with them, and when he thanks her and calls her “zhang-Wen,” she waves off the title and insists he call her “popo.”

His polite reply of “Of course, Wen-po” only gets a frown.

“Just popo.”

The other Wens introduce themselves, similarly refusing to use their surname. Each asks that he refer to them as their given or courtesy name, accepting only -shu or -yi. One man simply introduces himself as jifu.

When their largely turnip-based breakfast is over, Wen Qing motions for him to follow her.

“They would prefer not to be known by Wen,” she tells him as they make their way out of the communal hall. “A-Ning and I are too well-known, but they… they are all civilians.”

Lan WangJi only nods. It makes a certain sense that they would prefer not to be associated with Wen RuoHan. The decision cannot have been easy, as it is unfilial. But the same shackles of filial piety that had kept them from acting against the clan head during the war had left them mere remnants fighting to survive, forever associated with Wen RuoHan and expected to atone for his wrongs. What was filial piety in these circumstances?

He understands, because he too is breaking filial piety in staying in Burial Mounds, in choosing Wei Ying over GusuLan.

Officially, his sect has chosen to let LanlingJin decide the fates of the Wen remnants, regardless of whether their decisions are righteous. His decision will put him at odds with not only his own sect, but with all of society.

He knows this is why Wei Ying broke from the YunmengJiang sect publicly, freeing them from association with his actions, freeing his brother from responsibility even as he opened himself to the shame of being unfilial, the judgment of society.

And if XiChen requests, he will do so as well. He will stand with Wei Ying, the two of them for the ideals they pledged to uphold.

He has chosen to be filial to his zhiji over his sect.

They are both orphans, in truth. Sect or no, Lan WangJi’s blood family is limited to XiChen and shufu. He can be assured his brother will care for Lan Qiren, will take the sect in hand as he was always destined to do. He was always only the Second Jade.

In blood, Wei Ying is alone. Has been alone since childhood, forced to find family through other bonds.

But Wei Ying has Lan WangJi, who claimed him in the Cold Spring cave.

He has never told him the significance of what he had done, handfasting him and claiming him in front of his ancestor, taking the first bow with him. He has, in fact, told no one of what he had done, not even XiChen. At sixteen, his feelings about Wei Ying confusing and upsetting to him, he didn’t have the words, and war had given him no time to find them.

With filial piety in question, and his owed to Wei Ying, the time to finally speak of it seems to be fast approaching. He will have to find the words now.

Lan WangJi somehow doubts the Lan elders will agree with his conclusions, but they will not be able to deny the significance of the handfasting and his responsibilities.

He will also need to find the words for Wei Ying. Lan WangJi does not regret the handfasting, but he does not know how his zhiji will feel, not only about the handfasting itself, but the fact that he has not told him for so long.

His name being called by Wen Qing interrupts his thoughts, and he finds her watching him with an inscrutable look on her face. He wonders if she’s said his name more than once. If so, she does not tell him.

“There are certain necessities we will use your contribution for,” she says after a moment. “Though I believe perhaps your input would be welcome. And perhaps acquiring more practical clothing or materials to sew them for you, as well.”

He can hardly argue with that; his robes, though practical for fighting, are not suitable for activities such as farming. He nods.

“Blankets,” he tells her. “Or perhaps materials if someone has the skill. Materials to construct beds, if practical.”

She eyes him, and nods. “One of the uncles used to be a carpenter. Several of the aunties can sew. Materials are less expensive than finished products. Beds would be welcome, especially for popo and some of the elders.”

Wen Qing pauses for just a moment, then smirks at him. “And Wei WuXian needs to stop sleeping on a damn rock.”

Lan WangJi can feel the tips of his ears heat; she has seen through him. But she also seems to approve, so he only nods.

After all, she did ask him to help Wei Ying, and he will.

“Also on my list are certain herbs, maybe seeds we can grow,” she tells him. “And maybe we can buy some damn potatoes to shut the idiot up, since he’s so obsessed with them, though I’m not sure Burial Mounds’ soil will grow them well. Different kinds of squash might work, though.”

One of the duties Lan WangJi grew up with was occasionally helping in the garden. While he does not know a lot, he is certain if he finds a bookstore in Yiling he can find out what will grow in poor soil. He says as much to Wen Qing.

“Well, I feel like an idiot,” she says with a short laugh. “We should have done that months ago.”

“You have had other things on your mind,” he allows.

She makes a noncommittal noise. “Nails, other building supplies. I know Wei WuXian will want cinnabar and talisman paper, as well as paper in general. Hell, he probably has a list of things he wants for his experiments.”

Wei Ying chooses that moment to pop out of the cave, yawning widely.

Wen Qing looks at him with a scowl Lan WangJi is fairly certain is largely manufactured.

“Go eat. You’re going to town today, and there’s only so much daylight. Lan WangJi will make a list to bring with.”

Wei Ying makes a show of sulking, but a-Yuan runs to him and he’s quickly distracted and on his way to the communal area in the care of popo, who is commenting about him being far too thin.

“Peppers,” he comments once Wei Ying is out of hearing.

He receives a flat stare from Wen Qing.

“He’s going to poison us all, you know,” she says despairingly. “We’ll have to ban him from the kitchen.”

“Apparently one of the few rules at Lotus Cove is that he is not allowed to cook,” Lan WangJi comments, remembering a tale he’d heard about ruined cooking pots.

Wen Qing sighs. “Noted. Get paper and ink for the list. I’ll choose an auntie to send with you to choose suitable fabrics and materials, and to haggle.”

When he reaches the cave and his qiankun pouch, he notices there is a scrawled addition to the letter to XiChen.

Zewu-Jun,

I’ve tried to convince him to go home. Perhaps you will have better luck.

Apologies,

Wei WuXian

It’s as good an addition as any. This decision is Lan WangJi’s, and Wei Ying has already fruitlessly lodged his protests. Any offered by others will be similarly ineffective; he has made his decision.

He already expects shufu to read the letter, which is part of what led him to cite so many of the principles. But Lan QiRen already thinks poorly of Wei Ying, and will no doubt cast blame on him regardless.

Nothing he or Wei Ying can add to the letter will change that reality, and so he simply tucks the letter in his sleeve before gathering the paper, inkstone, and ink from the pouch to take outside with him.

#cql #mdzs #mo dao zu shi #the untamed #untamed fanfiction #wei wuxian #wei ying #lan zhan #lan wangji #lan yuan #wen qing #wen ning #wen qionglin #chen qing ling

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fineillsignup · 5 years

Text

Me at the end note of ch. 5 of The Pale Shade of Blue: “Up through the end of this chapter is where I had strong inspiration, so I have no idea how long it will take me to write the next chapter.”

Me three days later: I have some more garbage

“Husband,” she said, and then again, “husband,” looking into his eyes, and just in that moment she looked vulnerable, like someone who could actually be hurt, and he knew that he would kill a thousand people rather than let that happen, he knew that he could do it, that deaths were going to come but that the two of them were going to protect each other.

“My dear,” he whispered, qin’ai, intimate and beloved.

One place that the Chinese language and I are totally on the same wave length is that Chinese language/culture is, and apparently for thousands and thousands of years has been, totally down with pet names and endearments. Modern Chinese culture (more on the mainland, to be fair) makes it acceptable to use pet names with total strangers, and I’m down with that.

But of course pet names with people you’re actually intimate with are more special, and I’m down with that too. The Japanese version of Dynasty Warriors has Zhang Chunhua call her husband the non-pet name per se danna-sama, an extremely respectful/submissive way to address one’s husband, more like saying “my lord husband” than anything English would commonly allow (Sakura calls Sasuke this... sigh). It’s meant as an irony, of course, because haha, Sima Yi is whipped, get it, get it??? And while in Japanese Sima Yi mostly calls her by her given name, Shunka as it’s pronounced in Japanese, in the English translation he inevitably calls her my dear, again, haha, get it, he actually is just afraid of her and doesn’t even like her, haha ha, ha, ha.

So I freely borrowed from both of these. I imagine that Chunhua calls him 郎君 langjun, an archaic way to refer to one’s husband that is very much like danna-sama, in terms of being very submissive, but is a little more romantic because both lang and jun have associated notions of being a perfect noble gentleman, whereas danna is, uh, more like a master in the capitalistic sense.

Meanwhile Sima Yi calls her 亲爱 qin’ai, usually translated as “dear” or “darling”, qin “intimate, close, also adverb intimately, closely” ai “love”.

Dynasty Warriors, Chinese history generally: Women ain’t shit and any woman who dares to try to be shit will get shit on instead

Me: hold my baijiu

#we're going to rewrite history #this time with feeling #the pale shade of blue #i cannot be stopped #historical accuracy? sorry i only know drama #sima yi x zhang chunhua #chinese language #pet names #chinese culture #three kingdoms #my fanfic #dynasty warriors

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fangzhouzi · 6 years

Text

答南京大学张辰宇教授：不要对转基因“盲目发声”

　　南京大学生命科学学院院长张辰宇6月9日在群学书院-半城读书举办的“医学、生命科学与人类健康”高峰论坛系列公益讲座第二讲上做了题为《转基因：现状与争论背后的意蕴》，以专业人士自居，对关于“转基因食品”争论的双方各打五十大板：

　　【在这场对于“转基因食品”的大争论中，“挺转”与“反转”双方各执一词。以“挺转”的方舟子与“反转”的崔永元为代表，我发现“挺转”的主力都不是转基因领域的大牛，在这个领域并没有深入的研究，但却认为自己掌握着科学的真理，盲目发声，认为转基因食品是绝对安全的，无害的，甚至对质疑的人说出“你们都不懂，你们是傻缺”的话语。但是事实上，科学没有绝对的，都是逐步发现的，小RNA就是一个典型的例子。现有转基因领域的大牛们并没有对于这个问题像方舟子这样摇旗呐喊啊。　　而“反转”的主力基本都不是科学界的，用我们东北人的话讲，都是“社会人”，大量传播着毫无科学依据的东西，甚至谣言，我觉得有损双方的对话，也不利于民众真正了解转基因食品。　　事实上，我比较赞同早期崔永元对于转基因食品的观点，即民众需要有知情权，转基因食品的安全不是没有疑议的，中国存在监管不力。但是后来崔永元被拱到了那个位置，原有理性的声音也变得非理性了。　　“方舟子们”与“崔永元们”争论的过程中语言、思维和行为方式极其不理性，粗鲁粗暴，缺乏基本的相互尊重，甚至将不同观点转化为私人恩怨，将原有的讨论变成了争论，甚至演变为骂战，经过互联网的发酵之后，双方的鸿沟进一步拓宽，我认为这是不可取的。】　　【转基因的争论在西方是一个“利益”问题，在中国是一个社会问题，“挺”“反”双方的讨论极其不理性、不专业，民众的科学素养不高，政府的公信力不足让民众幸福。】

　　张教授批评“挺”“反”双方的讨论极其不理性、不专业，当然是认为自己非常理性、专业的了。那么我们就来看看张教授自己理性、专业到什么程度。

　　张教授说“‘挺转’的主力都不是转基因领域的大牛，在这个领域并没有深入的研究”，挺转的主力中当然有转基因领域的大牛，包括中国做转基因的几名院士，例如范云六、戴景瑞、朱作言、张启发，牛肯定比张教授还大。张教授也许认为他们不算挺转的主力，我才算吧。我当然不是转基因领域的大牛，但不是转基因领域的大牛不等于就“在这个领域并没有深入的研究”，更不等于就不能科普转基因，否则张教授本人也不从事转基因的科研（原来是研究糖尿病的，后来突然研究起了植物微小RNA），更不是大牛，怎么也做起转基因的科普呢？要掌握转基因的知识，并不需要本人做转基因的科研，有生物学教育背景并掌握相关的资料即可。张教授生物学教育背景是有的（虽然不怎么样），但是相关的资料没有认真去掌握。

　　张教授批评我说：“认为自己掌握着科学的真理，盲目发声，认为转基因食品是绝对安全的，无害的，甚至对质疑的人说出‘你们都不懂，你们是傻缺’的话语。”

　　我当然认为自己在转基因问题上掌握着科学的真理，否则我还做什么科普，应该去接受科普才对。张教授本人如果不认为自己掌握着科学的真理，怎么好意思批评别人“极其不理性、不专业”“科学素养不高”呢？

　　所以认为自己掌握着科学的真理不是问题，“盲目发声”才是问题。我受过系统的生物学训练（比张教授受的训练还强点），写过两本科普转基因的书（正在编辑第三本）和上百篇转基因科普文章，都是尽量根据科学文献和权威资料，自信对转基因技术和有关争议的了解远不是明显是为了做演讲才临时胡乱找了点资料的张教授可比。张教授说我“盲目发声”，就请他具体地指出来我的书中、文章中哪一点是“盲目发声”，否则他就是在造谣。

　　张教授还说我：“认为转基因食品是绝对安全的，无害的，甚至对质疑的人说出‘你们都不懂，你们是傻缺’的话语。”这也完全是造谣。我多次说过，绝对安全的食品是不存在的，反转控要求转基因食品证明绝对安全、无害是漫天要价。只要证明了转基因食品和同类非转基因食品一样安全甚至更安全，就可以放心，而被批准上市的转基因食品都是证明过的，都可放心食用。我从来没有对质疑的人说出“你们都不懂，你们是傻缺”的话语，否则我写那么多文章苦口婆心去科普转基因干什么？

　　张教授说：“事实上，我比较赞同早期崔永元对于转基因食品的观点，即民众需要有知情权，转基因食品的安全不是没有疑议的，中国存在监管不力。”事实上，崔永元早期就一直在造谣转基因食品不安全，例如造谣说转基因食品含有“不明病原体”，难道张教授也比较赞同？张教授还赞同“转基因食品的安全不是没有疑议的”，“虽然目前尚未发现转基因食品危害人类健康的确切证据，但并不表示将来也不会发现。转基因食品的安全性评价具有累积性和潜伏性，需要长期监测才能对其安全性作出较为客观的评价。”凭这点就该把张教授划为“反转派”，他怎么又声称自己不反对转基因呢？一种食品的安全性有疑议还能上市吗？还能放心地吃吗？各个国际权威机构、各国监管部门都认为目前对转基因食品的评价是充分、恰当的，张教授凭什么说“需要长期监测才能对其安全性作出较为客观的评价”？就因为他极其“专业”地发现了“转基因食品的安全性评价具有累积性和潜伏性”？身为南京大学生命科学学院院长，对转基因的认识如此糊涂，却偏要举着“专业”的大棒砸人，要砸南京大学的牌子？

　　张教授说：“‘方舟子们’与‘崔永元们’争论的过程中语言、思维和行为方式极其不理性，粗鲁粗暴，缺乏基本的相互尊重，甚至将不同观点转化为私人恩怨，将原有的讨论变成了争论，甚至演变为骂战”，张教授说这种话大概觉得自己很客观公正中立，然而任何不带偏见的人如果真的对比过双方的言论，都不会说出如此混淆视听的话，居然认为“方舟子们”与“崔永元们”是同一类人。所以善意地说，张教授在这里是“盲目发声”，不客气地说，则是因为张教授和我有“私人恩怨”故意颠倒黑白。

　　在张教授的研究（他自称“重大发现”，并因此开创了“南京学派”）被反转控利用时，我评论过他的研究的实质，让他至今耿耿于怀，在讲座前面这么说：“因为我的这项研究，网上有很多人将我列入了‘反对转基因’的阵营，也有研究者指责我的研究并未被国外实验室重复，因此该项研究是夸张且失实的。”这里说的“有研究者”指的就是我。我在《笑话百出的“小崔考察转基因”》这么说：

　　【崔永元介绍说，“2011年南京大学张辰宇发现植物中的微小RNA能够进入血液，这表明人们在吃转基因食品的时候，可以摄入食物的遗传信息片段。”张辰宇的实验结果国外几个实验室都重复不出来，可能不是真实结果。即使是真实的，也与转基因食品的安全性无关。转基因作物并不改变植物中的微小RNA，转基因食品中的微小RNA是原来就有的，所以人们在吃转基因食品的时候，和吃同类非转基因食品一样，即使能摄入微小RNA，摄入的也是原有的微小RNA。如果担心摄入微小RNA会影响人体，那么首先要担心的是非转基因食品的安全性，吃普通大米就要担心被里面的微小RNA影响了人体，吃转基因大米并不增加这种风险。】

　　其实我当时说得太客气了，不够“专业”。更“专业”地说吧，国外很多家实验室不仅到最近都没能重复出张教授的实验结果，而且怀疑张教授的实验结果是污染所致，是假象，有一个还讽刺说这可能是“只在一个实验室特殊技术或条件下才能做出的结果”（见文献）。当然这不妨碍张教授自称是一个“重大的发现”、“我的发现已经有太多的人重复出来了”，还有声有色地描述孟山都如何害怕他这个发现：

　　【我确实不喜欢孟山都这家公司。因为作为一家垄断公司，它为了自身利益公然阻挠科学发现。我到布鲁塞尔去的时候，碰到了孟山都的首席科学家，他说我的发现在当时已经影响了他们的市场，而且使他们产生额外的成本大概是每年1.2亿美金左右，就是用来查这些microRNA是否对人体有影响。1.2亿美金啊，那他肯定要反对我了。】

　　不知道他碰到了哪个孟山都的哪个首席科学家，会这么害怕一个没有获得公认的“重大发现”，每年花那么多钱去查没有哪个监管部门要求查的“这些microRNA是否对人体有影响”。哪个孟山都傻到这种程度，别是蒙山都吧？

　　看这次讲座的现场照片发现，江苏省还为张教授建了一个“江苏省小核糖核酸工程研究中心”。为一篇别人重复不出来的论文就建一个中心，正如河北省为韩春雨的一篇别人同样重复不出来的论文建了一个“基因编辑研究中心”一样，都是因为现在中国的“重大发现”太多了，钱也太多了。

2018.6.21

文献： 1. Witwer KW. Alternative miRNAs? Human sequences misidentified as plant miRNAs in plant studies and in human plasma. F1000Res. 2018 Feb 28;7:244. 2. Huang H, Davis CD, Wang TTY. Extensive Degradation and Low Bioavailability of Orally Consumed Corn miRNAs in Mice. Nutrients. 2018 Feb 15;10(2). 4. Kang W, Bang-Berthelsen CH, Holm A, Houben AJ, Müller AH, Thymann T, Pociot F, Estivill X, Friedlander MR. Survey of 800+ data sets from human tissue and body fluid reveals xenomiRs are likely artifacts. RNA. 2017 Apr;23(4):433-445. 5. Masood M, Everett CP, Chan SY, Snow JW. Negligible uptake and transfer of diet-derived pollen microRNAs in adult honey bees. RNA Biol. 2016;13(1):109-18. 6. Tosar JP, Rovira C, Naya H, Cayota A. Mining of public sequencing databases supports a non-dietary origin for putative foreign miRNAs: underestimated effects of contamination in NGS. RNA. 2014 Jun;20(6):754-7. 7. Witwer KW, Hirschi KD. Transfer and functional consequences of dietary microRNAs in vertebrates: concepts in search of corroboration: negative results challenge the hypothesis that dietary xenomiRs cross the gut and regulate genes in ingesting vertebrates, but important questions persist. Bioessays. 2014 Apr;36(4):394-406. 8. Witwer KW, McAlexander MA, Queen SE, Adams RJ. Real-time quantitative PCR and droplet digital PCR for plant miRNAs in mammalian blood provide little evidence for general uptake of dietary miRNAs: limited evidence for general uptake of dietary plant xenomiRs. RNA Biol. 2013 Jul;10(7):1080-6. 9. Snow JW, Hale AE, Isaacs SK, Baggish AL, Chan SY. Ineffective delivery of diet-derived microRNAs to recipient animal organisms. RNA Biol. 2013 Jul;10(7):1107-16. 10. Dickinson B, Zhang Y, Petrick JS, Heck G, Ivashuta S, Marshall WS. Lack of detectable oral bioavailability of plant microRNAs after feeding in mice. Nat Biotechnol. 2013 Nov;31(11):965-7.

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mintaka14 · 3 years

Link

Sparring

This is a burning house, but we should stay inside

‘Cause something’s telling me that we should stay and fight

I know it’s going to take a lot to change your mind

But baby, put your white flag down

I’m rolling up my sleeves right now

[Bloodstone: Guy Sebastian]

Dawn was announced by the gong and drums, stirring the ship into activity, and Marin spared a quick moment to splash water from a pitcher on her face before she came out onto the deck. The wind had carried them far from Rongyao, and between the water and the lightening sky there was no limit to the endless blue.

Zifeng was standing on the quarterdeck beside the captain, incense rising like a ghost from the bronze brazier behind them. As soon as he saw Marin, he descended to meet her.

“Have you seen Daisuke?” she asked, and a frown shadowed his face for a moment.

“Why are you seeking him?”

“What’s up, Priestess?” Daisuke’s voice drifted down from the rigging, and Marin tilted her head back, shading her eyes, until she could see Daisuke far above. He was braced precariously on the rope ladder where it was anchored to the mast, and it swayed under him as he leaned back against the mast and grinned down at her.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Marin asked sharply.

Daisuke raised an eyebrow at her. “What does it look like I’m doing? I need to stretch my legs a bit. I’m bored. And the view’s amazing from up here. Come on up and see,” he said, and swung almost upside down to reach a hand out to her with a grin.

For one heartbeat she stared at his callused hand, but Zifeng’s disapproving huff broke the moment, and then the ladder shifted unsteadily. Marin bit back a cry of alarm, but Daisuke just caught at the rope with his other hand and laughed.

She called up to him, “Hold onto the ladder, you idiot! There are other cures for boredom than risking your life climbing the rigging.”

“It’s okay,” Daisuke said consolingly. “If I die, you can have the fun of saying ‘I told you so’.”

“Reckless,” Zifeng muttered. “This is unnecessary. You need not waste time on seeking answers from this outworlder. What does it matter how he came here, or why the ceremony failed to summon Suzaku? We know what we must do to remedy the situation.”

Daisuke swung down and landed on the deck beside them with a thud.

“Maybe you’re just worried about what Marin will find out,” he suggested provocatively. He tilted an eyebrow at Marin. “Are you sure His Lordship here is the real Tamahome? Maybe he’s the fake.”

Marin stepped between them before Zifeng could rise to the bait, her hand gentling on Zifeng’s arm as she drew his attention to her.

“If we don’t know what went wrong then it could well happen again, and we can’t afford to fail a second time,” Marin insisted. “I need to talk to Daisuke, and I need answers.”

She held his gaze until the crackling tension eased, but Marin could see that the lines around Zifeng’s mouth were tight, and the look in his eyes was thunderous as he watched Daisuke follow her back to the stateroom.

~~~~~

“Out of curiosity,” Daisuke said as the door of the stateroom closed behind him, “who’s Zhang Yong’s master?”

On the other side of the room, Meixing paused the sweep of her blade to throw him a dimpled smile before she went back to the series of sword forms she was running through with fluid efficiency in the confined space. She had clearly had exquisite training.

Marin looked back over her shoulder at the question. “That would be Tai Yi Jun.”

“The Great Sage thingy?”

“The Supreme One, the Great Sage Emperor of Heaven,” Marin corrected primly. “Yes. Why do you ask?”

He shrugged. “I overheard Zhang Yong talking to someone last night. He called them ‘master’. It just seemed odd.”

Marin made a soft, non-committal hum, but Meixing said, “Oh, he talks to Tai Yi Jun in his mirror all the time when he thinks no one’s looking.” At Marin’s frown she added, “Is that important? Zifeng said –“

“Zifeng knows?” Marin cut her off sharply, and Meixing’s eyes widened. Daisuke could see Marin visibly rein herself in and summon up a reassuring smile for the princess, but the rigid set of her spine when she turned back to the books spoke volumes.

“- how the hell does anyone expect me to do my job if they keep information from me that I need to know –“ he heard her muttering savagely under her breath, and he touched her arm gently. Meixing was still watching Marin with an anxious wariness even as she took up the sword exercises again.

“Not that I don’t enjoy yanking your boyfriend’s chain,” Daisuke said, “but what do you need me here for?”

Marin straightened, taking a deep breath. “Why did the tengu come to you in our world? Never mind how they got there, why did they come to you? Why did they think you’d know anything about where Suzaku is?”

“Sugar, I still have no idea.” He leaned back against the wall. “Just interested, did the tengu attack the Temple before or after that ceremony?”

Marin stared at him with an arrested expression.

“After,” she said thoughtfully. “Which would suggest that, unless they mistimed the attack, that they weren’t trying to stop us from summoning Suzaku. You said that the three that found you in our world asked you where Suzaku was?”

Daisuke nodded.

“So they wanted Suzaku for something. But what? And we’re back to why did they think that you would know where He was?”

“You’re the one with the books and the theories. I’m just here because I’m bored and I’m clearly not going home anytime soon.”

“Have you ever seen Him? Or had dreams about Him? Anything?”

Daisuke sighed a negative.

“What have you heard about the four gods? Any stories?” Marin asked.

“Beyond the same fairy tales that you probably grew up with? Nothing.” He shrugged impatiently. “There were firebird puppets and fireworks at some of the summer festivals we went to as kids, but I think I would have noticed if I’d see the real deal.”

“You have festivals in your world?” Meixing asked, pausing on one foot with her sword balanced in her hand. “Do you have lanterns? I love the lanterns, but we were never allowed to dance or eat the food or do anything fun.” She wrinkled her nose, and quoted “ ‘A princess must be modest and composed, and reflect well on her family.’ “

“Sounds dull.” Daisuke wrinkled his nose back at her.

Marin dragged a folio across the desk towards her, and he watched as she submerged herself in her research with that shift of intense focus. She looked up when she realised he was still standing there and pushed a stool towards him with one foot.

“Well? If you’re bored enough to risk your life in the rigging you can help me find some answers.” Marin levelled a look at him, and from the other side of the cabin, Meixing giggled. “Slave driver,” he muttered, but the corners of his mouth twitched up as he sat opposite her. “I bet you’re the kind who’d rather stay home with a book than dating.”

“When the alternative is guys like you? Definitely a book, every time. Besides, I go to Midorikawa Academy. There aren’t a whole lot of boys to choose from there,” she threw back.

“You go to Midorikawa? You’re kidding me, right?”

“You know it?”

“A whole school full of girls? Of course I do,” he said with mock indignation. Marin rolled her eyes.

“Of course you do,” she echoed.

“I bet you look hot in your uniform.

“Perv.” She got to her feet, gathering a handful of papers.

“Please tell me you’re a classroom monitor or something. I love a woman in charge.”

Marin shook her head, and stood up. She leaned down to grab another book from the basket in the corner, and threw a look at him over her shoulder.

“Actually, I’m the school captain,” she told him, and he heard her stifled laugh when he fell backwards in an exaggerated swoon, one hand over his heart.

“You’re killing me here, sugar.”

“I’m sure you’ll live.”

“Does His Lordship know about this side of you?” he teased, and Meixing giggled, but it was as if a shutter suddenly closed down on Marin’s face. She dropped a pile of books in front of Daisuke without saying anything further, and Daisuke almost regretted needling her like that.

“Seriously, you’re killing me,” he groaned. He turned idly through a few pages. “We get sucked into a book and end up in a world that looks like it’s straight out of a Chinese fantasy, and I still wind up doing homework,” he complained. “How is that fair?”

“Who said life was meant to be fair?” Marin asked, lifting her eyes to meet his. She drew a quick series of symbols and handed the list to him. “These are the names you’re looking for. Just keep a look out for any mentions of Zhuque or Zhuniao. Some parts of the texts refer to Zhurong, or one of these other names. Or you’re looking for Suzaku in the more recent records in Japanese. I’m trying to find any mention of when the god appeared in the world.”

“They’re written in Japanese too?” He flicked to the end of the book that she’d handed him and raised an eyebrow at the mix of recognisable kana and kanji instead of the older Chinese script he’d been looking at. “Interesting.”

He glanced down at the scroll under her hands. He could make out part of the calligraphy, but the text that disappeared under the roll of paper was in a different hand, the ink faded and the script incomprehensible. “You can actually read that?”

“Yes, but then I’ve been studying classical Chinese and calligraphy for some time now,” she responded, her attention back on the scroll.

“Seriously? You must be good at it if you can make any sense of that.” He nodded at the scroll. “What script even is this? I can barely make out half the characters, let alone understand any of it.”

“I won the Honda prize for Classical Chinese Poetry,” Marin admitted, sounding as if she was confessing to something shameful, and Daisuke gave a faint whistle.

“Smart girl.”

She shrugged dismissively.

“At least it got my mother off my case about studying Classical Chinese. She’s happier, now that she can drop that into conversations.”

“And she wasn’t happy before?” Daisuke asked incredulously. “What did she want?”

“She wanted me to study modern Chinese. More business prospects and career opportunities there,” she added, seeing his confused look as she turned her head towards him.

“So you studied classical instead. You rebel,” he teased, but he eyed her with a new interest.

“Not really. I’ve always been the good girl,” Marin responded bitterly. “Kimiko’s the rebel.”

She turned back to the scroll, hunching her shoulder slightly.

“And who’s Kimiko?” Daisuke prodded, tipping his head down to meet her eyes. Marin sighed.

“This really isn’t getting us anywhere. I’ve got work to do if I’m going fix things.”

“Kimiko the rebel sounds like someone I’d like to meet,” Daisuke suggested, enjoying the way Marin’s dark eyes flashed fire as they met his.

“You and everyone else,” Marin snapped. “My little sister is the fun one, and I’m the one who winds up cleaning up her mess when everything goes south. You and Kimiko would get on like a house on fire, I’m sure.” It didn’t sound like it was meant to be a compliment.

“You sound like my brother,” Daisuke said a little sourly. “Did it ever occur to you that she might not need you to fix everything for her? I get so sick of Hikari jumping in and telling me what I’m doing wrong all the time. It just makes me want to screw everything up worse, just to see how far I have to go before he stops trying to do everything for me.”

He pulled back, reaching for a charcoal stick. “At least my mistakes are mine.”

They ignored each other for some time after that. Daisuke hadn’t realised he’d been idly drawing in the margins of his notes until Meixing slid onto the stool next to him.

“What are you doing?” the princess asked curiously, tilting her head to see, and he checked his instinctive move to cover the page. “Oh, that’s pretty! Marin, he’s drawing you.”

Daisuke briefly shut his eyes, and opened them again with a sigh to find Marin looking at them with a raised eyebrow.

“Draw me next,” Meixing demanded, and he reached out to flick her hair with his charcoal stick.

“As Her Highness commands,” he gave in with a wry grin, and turned over a fresh page. Meixing watched with bright eyes as he quickly sketched in the first lines. When he finished, he handed her the portrait with a flourish.

“There. It is but a poor reflection of your beauty,” he said extravagantly, and Meixing gazed up at him through her eyelashes, giving him a flirtatious smile that would have been devastating if she had been six years older, or he had been a different person.

As the gong rang out for the midday meal, the princess flung herself out of the cabin, clutching her portrait.

He heard her yelling, “Tian Zhen! Tian Zhen, look at what Daisuke gave me!” and he couldn’t help grinning.

“It looks like you have an admirer,” Marin said, flicking a glance in the direction of the retreating princess. Clearly she was willing to talk to him again.

Daisuke raised an eyebrow.

“Are you jealous?”

“Desperately,” she responded drily, and he laughed.

“Never mind,” Daisuke said. “She’ll get over it.”

“Rather quickly, if she spends much time with you. You might want to tread a bit more carefully, though,” Marin warned him. “She’s young, and she’s spent all her life in the Imperial harem away from guys like you.”

Daisuke snorted. “You really don’t have much of an opinion of me, do you? That big guy with the plants who follows the princess around everywhere must think she’s safe around me if he hasn’t stomped me flat yet.”

“Oh, Tian Zhen will squash you like a bug,” Marin agreed. “But I will gut you slowly and decorate the trees from here to Beijia with your intestines if you even think about hurting her.”

“I had no idea you were so bloodthirsty,” he said cheerfully. “That’s so hot.”

She rolled her eyes at him as he held the door open for her, but he saw the flickering smile she tried to hide as she turned away.

~~~~~

The air was growing colder out over the water by the seventh day. Sometime in the night they had passed out of Hongnan’s territory and the shoreline in the distance was a ribbon of gold as the sun came up. The ship skimmed past the broken spires of rocky and inhospitable islands, and the helmsman heaved the rudder sharply towards the shore as the wind dropped. By the time the sun was directly overhead they could make out the curves and shadows of the sand dunes. The call went out to drop anchor.

Zifeng sent Zhang Yong to find out what was going on, and was told that the wind had died. The news that there was no help for it, they would moor there until the wind picked up again, left Zifeng at his most imperiously bad-tempered but there was nothing to be done. They would have to wait for the wind.

For three days they were becalmed, and among the Seishi there was a sense of watchful tension that only grew as they remained unmoving in the hot, still air. When Daisuke leaned over the side of the ship, the water below was as smooth as glass and it was disconcerting to look down into the sea floor and the shoals in its depths.

As more days wore on, the tension grew unbearably thick along with the heat. Small fights broke out, and Daisuke watched the captain’s face grow more dour, his creased eyes frequently shifting from water to sky and back again, as if looking for something that should be there but wasn’t. The Seishi eyed each other in unspoken communication and trod warily as Zifeng’s face grew more mask-like. The only one who seemed untouched by the growing atmosphere was Marin, and she focused on her books and notes with single-minded intensity.

The sun rose on another day becalmed, and Daisuke wasn’t the only one on deck at dawn, unable to sleep in the close, prickly heat of the cabin. In a clear space between the barrels and ropes Zifeng was running through a series of sword forms, and the languid elegance of his movements was belied by the clenched tension in his jaw.

Daisuke tucked his hand into his tunic as he watched, fingering his butterfly knife. Zifeng made it look so easy, but much as he disliked the golden boy, Daisuke guessed at how deadly it could be at full speed.

Zifeng executed a particularly beautiful and elaborate sequence of moves.

“If he tried that in a street fight, he’d get himself killed,” Daisuke muttered sourly, and behind him he heard Jing Yun’s snort of agreement.

“Although he really is as good as he thinks he is,” Jing Yun told him. “And with Tamahome’s strength behind his sword, he’s almost unstoppable.”

When Marin stepped out of the cabin and moved across the deck to join them, Daisuke said, “Your boyfriend’s not bad with a sword. What weapon do you use?”

“I don’t,” she said, and added, “I’m the brains of this group.”

“I can see that.”

Marin shot a mischievous glance past him to Jing Yun. “My Seishi won’t let me fight.”

Jing Yun put his hand over his heart and gave a deep and florid bow.

“And have our Priestess risk a fingernail? Besides, there’s got to be some point to keeping us around.”

Marin’s eyebrow lifted. “Other than your appalling cooking skills?”

While Jing Yun teased Marin back, Daisuke hesitated, then reached into his tunic and held out his butterfly knife to Marin.

“Here. A present for you, Priestess.”

“But won’t you need it?”

“I can always get something else.” He shrugged. “And at the rate you attract trouble it won’t hurt you to have a little extra, easily concealed weaponry. Something no one’s expecting. I can teach you how to use it,” he said casually.

“I bet you can. Are you a martial artist?”

Daisuke shrugged again. “I trained a little, but I couldn’t stick at the discipline stuff. People ordering me around.”

“I’m shocked,” Marin said drily.

“Hikari was always the karate star. Perfect form, perfect discipline. I got…” he paused, looking for the word, “practical experience. Fights in the street, no one cares how textbook your form is. You’re either the one on the ground or the last one standing, and no one’s checking to see how you got there.”

More of the Seishi had drifted over to join them. Marin was holding the closed blade awkwardly.

“See if you can open it,” Daisuke suggested, and Marin fumbled the catch, swinging the handles open with her other hand. Daisuke grinned at her. “I think we need to start with learning to open it with one move, one hand.”

He held out his hand, and when she handed the knife to him he demonstrated with practised ease. He passed it back to her. Zifeng had put away his sword and was watching them with a frown.

“You do not need to do this,” Zifeng told Marin, his voice stiff with disapproval. “We are here to protect you.”

“And what if you’re not? Are you going to follow her around every waking second?” Daisuke asked, and he turned back to Marin. “Okay, try that again.”

Marin tried to flick the blade open the way Daisuke had, and hissed as the handles pinched her. Zhang Yong glared at Daisuke as if he was the one who’d harmed the Priestess, and Zifeng frowned in concern.

“If you must take up weaponry,” he said stiffly, “I could teach you.”

Daisuke made a faint noise of derision. “You’re all kinds of awesome with a sword, Your Lordship, but Marin doesn’t have time to learn that skill.”

“You would have her learn the disreputable tricks of the streets,” Zifeng said with a sneer, and Daisuke’s grin grew sharp.

“Yup. Better disreputable than dead,” he said cheerfully.

“You do not need to do this,” Zifeng repeated.

Marin gave Zifeng a wry smile. “I want to do this. Daisuke’s right - I’d like to be able to defend myself a little, even if I’ve got my warriors to keep me safe,” she told him, and turned back to Daisuke. “Show me again.”

She tried to flick it again and nearly dropped the knife. Daisuke silently reached out to reposition her fingers.

“Try this,” he said, wrapping his own hand around her wrist to guide her. It gave him an excuse to focus on her hands, to laugh with her and tease her and have her turn those eyes on him with that look of incredulity as he got more and more outrageous just to see her react. And if Zifeng watched him with cool disapproval, and Zhang Yong lurked too close with black looks and suspicion oozing out of every pore, well, Daisuke didn’t much care.

By the time the gong sounded for the shift change, Marin had a few more bruises across her fingers but she was at least able to clumsily get the knife open with one flick of her wrist. Daisuke grinned at her proudly.

“Not bad, Priestess.”

His gaze involuntarily following the Priestess, as she tucked the knife into her sash and walked away to join Zifeng on the other side of the deck with Zhang Yong sticking close by.

“You really do like to live life on the edge, don’t you?” Jing Yun said behind him. “Just don’t go destroying my world because you can’t keep it in your pants.”

“Your god can’t be stupid enough to think that all she’s got going for her is purity,” Daisuke responded, his eyes still on Marin. “I’ve never met anyone quite that scary smart, and that glint in her eye when she forgets about trying to be Little Miss Perfect...” he trailed off, realising that he was smiling in spite of himself. “Heaven help the poor idiot who gets in her way.”

Jing Yun just shook his head again, and slid a wrapped bundle across towards Daisuke.

“I thought you could use these, seeing you gave away your little knife there.”

Daisuke unfolded one corner of the wrapping, and his eyebrow shot up. Carefully, he lifted one of the two exquisite daggers, and drew it from its sheath. Light rippled along the blade as he tilted it, and the carved hilt felt perfect in his hand. He swept it gently through the air, watching its steel path.

“Where on earth did you get these?” Daisuke asked, feeling a little lightheaded. Jing Yun glanced back over his shoulder, and Daisuke followed his line of sight to Zifeng, silhouetted against the sky like a prince straight out of an epic story. Daisuke’s grin widened.

“Let’s just say,” Jing Yun said, “that I think you might need them more than their former owner. I don’t think I’d go flashing them around, though, if I were you.”

“Don’t you want them yourself?”

“I don’t profit from my friends. But I don’t think it’s a good idea, letting you go unarmed. And if it yanks His Lordship’s chain a bit, then that’s just a bonus.”

“I shall treasure them all the more for that sentiment.”

They shared a grin, and Daisuke slid the blade carefully back into its sheath.

“Although His Lordship isn’t the only one who’s not happy about me running around with weapons,” Daisuke added drily. “I get the feeling that if Zhang Yong had his way I’d not only be disarmed, but chained to the mast with a round-the-watch guard on me.”

Jing Yun made a derisive noise. “And you’ve worked so hard to get him to like you.”

“He started it,” Daisuke muttered, realising even as he said it how childish he sounded.

“Zhang Yong has not exactly had an easy time of it. He has reason to be angry and scared.” At Daisuke’s questioning look, Jing Yun revealed, “The tengu attacked Hongnan for the first time when Zhang Yong was about six. His father administered a tiny village in Zifeng’s family’s lands until the tengu appeared up out of the blue and killed everyone. Zhang Yong was the only one who survived, but not before the tengu had torn him up and left him for dead. It was days before anyone found him.”

Daisuke was silent.

“Then they found out that Zhang Yong was Chiriko, constellation of the Net, and Tai Yi Jun turned up and claimed him for training.”

“Have you ever met this Great Sage of his?” Daisuke asked.

“Once, when Marin brought us all together in Rongyao.”

“What’s she like?”

Jing Yun’s mouth curled in an odd, twisted smile. “Like everyone’s idea of their sweet little old grandmother. Until she looks straight at you.” His smile twisted further. “And that was what raised Zhang Yong after he lost his family and was left scarred and broken by the tengu. Cut him a break. It took him a long time to warm up to the rest of us too.”

Daisuke didn’t respond. He turned back to the weapons in front of him, drawing first one and then the other dagger free, his attention fixed on the play of light along the exquisitely forged blades. Jing Yun smiled faintly and got up while Daisuke examined the hilts more deeply. Ugly little monsters grimaced at him in a friendly fashion from the brass whorls of the guard, and under his fingers he could make out the elaborate curls of the inevitable phoenix tail carved into the dark wood of the hilt. He turned one of the daggers to follow the line of the firebird up to its surprisingly realistic gaze. It seemed to regard him with a benevolent eye.

“You, I can live with,” he told it, and came to his feet, liking the way the daggers felt in his hands and the way they flowed through the air around him as he fell into patterns of movement that he hadn’t practised in some time. But some things are never quite forgotten, and the kata came back to him like breathing as he tested the reach and feel of his new weapons.

He didn’t realise that Marin was watching him, still as a statue, her face impassive, until some time had passed, and he came to a halt a little less gracefully than he would have liked.

“Back again, Your Worshipfulness?” he asked flippantly to cover his stumble. He didn’t think she was fooled. “Did you miss me?”

“Don’t flatter yourself,” she said with a cool lift of her eyebrow. She nodded at the blades in his hands. “Where did you get those?”

Zifeng came up behind Marin, and Daisuke could tell the moment when he saw the daggers in Daisuke’s hands. His face smoothed out into a stillness that hid the fury that Daisuke saw flash in his eyes.

“They were just lying around,” Daisuke shrugged, his grin growing wider as Zifeng’s spine grew stiffer.

“Those daggers have been in my family for generations,” Zifeng said with glacial control. He held out his hand. “Return them now, and perhaps I won’t have you chained in the hold for the remainder of our journey.”

Daisuke looked down at the blades with mock thoughtfulness, and looked back up at Zifeng.

“You know, I rather like them. How about you fight me for them?”

“Are you serious?” Marin asked incredulously.

“One round sparring,” Daisuke said, still grinning at Zifeng in a way that he knew would infuriate the young noble. “First blood gets the daggers.”

Zifeng raised one austere eyebrow, and drew his sword with a sharp sound from the scabbard.

“And when I win, you will return the daggers.”

“If you win,” Daisuke accepted, and tipped his head to loosen the muscles in his neck. He slid the daggers free and settled them into his hands, flexing his fingers around the hilts.

Daisuke was dimly aware that a crowd had gathered to watch.

“Why are they fighting?” he heard Meixing asking, and Marin’s cool reply, “Because they’re idiots.”

Zifeng stood, watching him expressionlessly. His sword was balanced with a practised elegance, waiting for Daisuke’s first move. Patience was not Daisuke’s forte, and so he attacked.

It became apparent to Daisuke very quickly that Zifeng was going carefully, and it pissed him off. He pushed a little too fast, and Zifeng pivoted smoothly to let Daisuke overextend. Daisuke scowled. Zifeng’s expression didn’t change as he effortlessly avoided the blades.

Eventually, Zifeng executed a manoeuvre that was too fluid to follow. Daisuke threw up a dagger in a mistimed block and felt a bead of blood trail down his forearm, followed by a sharp line of fire, then the daggers fell from his hands as his legs were swept out from under him. Zifeng had obviously had enough exercise for now.

“Not bad,” the lordling said, and waited for Daisuke to stand again. “You lasted longer than I had expected.”

“Are you quite done?” Marin asked in arctic tones, and Daisuke picked up the daggers. He reversed the blades, offering Zifeng the daggers hilt-first.

“As agreed,” he said wryly, and Zifeng stared at them for a long moment before turning a swift, unreadable look to Marin.

“I think you may need them more than I do,” he said expressionlessly. “Just make sure that you acquire a little more practice with them before your life depends on it.”

Zifeng turned and walked away before Daisuke could respond to the dig.

“You really are an idiot,” Marin told him, backing him up to sit on a nearby barrel as she looked at the cut on his forearm. He yelped as she prodded at the cut.

“You’re a ruthless woman,” he complained.

“If you’re foolish enough to challenge Zifeng, then I have no sympathy for you. Just don’t get any blood on my books.”

Xuelian emerged from the state room with a length of linen in her hand. She gave Daisuke’s arm a cursory glance, and her lips pressed in a tight line.

“Do you want me to keep him out of trouble for the rest of the journey?” she asked Marin, and Daisuke’s eyes widened as a faint red glow crept around the edges of the doctor’s fingers. The symbol of Nuriko, constellation of the Willow, gleamed softly on Xuelian’s collarbone, and Daisuke shot Marin an alarmed look.

“It’s tempting, but we probably shouldn’t,” Marin said with a hint of regret. The red glow faded from Xuelian’s hand and she raked another scathing glance over Daisuke before she swept back to the state room.

Marin grabbed the linen that Xuelian had put near her elbow to bind up the cut.

“You know how on edge everyone is, stuck here. You know how worried Zifeng is, and you had to go and provoke him anyway.” She tugged the binding a little too tight and he winced. “You deserved whatever you got. You’re lucky he’s too much of a gentleman to really fight you.”

“Yeah, he’s a gentleman, alright,” Daisuke muttered. He tilted his head curiously as he watched her focus on tying the bandage. “You don’t seem too bothered by this delay, though.”

“You want me to have a screaming meltdown about it?” Marin asked without looking up.

“No, I just don’t get why Zifeng’s got his panties in a bunch because the world is going to end if we don’t move soon, but you’re not fazed.”

“I just don’t see the point in getting flustered about something I can’t do anything about.”

Daisuke snorted. “Oh, please. You’re exactly the kind of control freak who’d lose it if something doesn’t work out the way you want it to.”

Marin glared at him.

“You’re just not convinced that we should be heading for this Teniaolan place, are you?” he pushed with sudden insight.

Before Marin could say anything, a faint breath of warm wind stirred across their faces. They felt it again, and Marin’s head turned to find Zifeng. She was frowning.

#Fushigi Yuugi

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projectdiscadence · 2 years

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fade to sky, storyboards 1 & 2

watch the finished music video here: (youtube link)

image descriptions below the cut!

image 1: a very light pencil sketch, with a rough outline in black ink. it depicts two faceless silhouettes, labeled as “jun’s parents”, standing behind another, smaller figure with their hands on the figure’s shoulders. the smaller figure is smiling, and a label above their head indicates that this is “jun”. messy text written in pencil beneath the frame says, “before jun’s parents died”. a timestamp of “0:00 - 0:05″ is written in pencil above the frame.

image 2: a light pencil sketch, with a similar ink outline. it depicts a similar small figure as the first image, still labeled “jun”, but this time they are frowning. the figures behind them are replaced with sheet-ghost-like figures, labelled as “parent ghosts”. beneath the frame, “(after the accident where jun got their aberration)” is written in pencil. above it, “0:05-0:14″ is written, also in pencil.

#project discadence #ch: jun zhang #song: fade to sky #storyboarding #ghosts

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jennbarrigar · 5 years

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oscarhgreene · 7 years

Text

What Makes Us Different

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References:

1. The role for gut permeability in the pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes–a solid or leaky concept? Li X, Atkinson MA. Pediatr Diabetes. 2015 Nov;16(7):485-92. doi: 10.1111/pedi.12305. Epub 2015 Aug 13. Review. PMID: 26269193 [PubMed – in process] Similar articles

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3. Increased IgA and IgM responses against gut commensals in chronic depression: further evidence for increased bacterial translocation or leaky gut. Maes M, Kubera M, Leunis JC, Berk M. J Affect Disord. 2012 Dec 1;141(1):55-62. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2012.02.023. Epub 2012 Mar 11. PMID: 22410503 [PubMed – indexed for MEDLINE] Similar articles

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6. Environment, dysbiosis, immunity and sex-specific susceptibility: a translational hypothesis for regressive autism pathogenesis. Mezzelani A, Landini M, Facchiano F, Raggi ME, Villa L, Molteni M, De Santis B, Brera C, Caroli AM, Milanesi L, Marabotti A. Nutr Neurosci. 2015 May;18(4):145-61. doi: 10.1179/1476830513Y.0000000108. Epub 2014 Jan 21. Review. PMID: 24621061 [PubMed – indexed for MEDLINE] Free PMC Article Similar articles

7. Microbiota-host interactions in irritable bowel syndrome: epithelial barrier, immune regulation and brain-gut interactions. Hyland NP, Quigley EM, Brint E. World J Gastroenterol. 2014 Jul 21;20(27):8859-66. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i27.8859. Review. PMID: 25083059 [PubMed – indexed for MEDLINE] Free PMC Article Similar articles

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11. Effects of enteral nutrition on the barrier function of the intestinal mucosa and dopamine receptor expression in rats with traumatic brain injury. Zhang X, Jiang X. JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr. 2015 Jan;39(1):114-23. doi: 10.1177/0148607113501881. Epub 2013 Sep 18. PMID: 24047867 [PubMed – indexed for MEDLINE] Similar articles

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