(Bideroo) Never Bites Without Consent

I came across some pretty old fic, and it touched me to the core.

Yes, that was me! I can definitely expand on my thoughts re: how Madam Yu’s behaviour reads differently to me due to my traditional, Chinese upbringing.

There is a lot of subjectivity as to whether Madam Yu can be read as abusive, and this reading is often influenced by culture—hence you often see completely off-base takes floating around. However, to me, the way that cultural context influences the reading will actually change depending on the relationship, so I will discuss each one separately. Most of the culturally insensitive takes are about her being an abusive or uncaring mother (she’s not), or that she’s a spurned woman (it’s more complicated than that), so you can skip down to the JC, JYL, and CSSR sections for that.

Madam Yu and Wei Wuxian

As a trend, I think western fandom tends to simplify Wei Wuxian’s dynamic with the Jiang family into an entire adopted family. Consequently, Yu Ziyuan gets perceived as this two-dimensional, evil stepmom figure—but I think this doesn’t capture the truth.

There’s a bit more variability among Chinese audiences when they read the Jiang family dynamic, partly due to our deeper familiarity with wuxia tropes, but mostly because there’s a mediocre Netflix translation colouring the western interpretation. Though many Chinese fans do view them all as a sort of family unit and read Madam Yu as a stepmother, I do not. To me, Jiang Fengmian and Jiang Yanli view Wei Wuxian as family—but Madam Yu does not. Madam Yu views him as a servant, a disciple of the sect, and an outsider at the dinner table—and it’s not wrong for her to do so. It’s not gracious, but it’s not unfounded. I don’t think Wei Ying ever gives any indication that he views her as a mother, either.

If you agree that they don’t have anything like a mother-son relationship, all these insults/complaints that Yu Ziyuan levels at him—that he’s the “son of a servant”, that Jiang Fengmian is weird for openly favouring Wei Wuxian over his own son, etc.—these start to make sense? Like, it’s shitty to listen to, but none of it is wrong. Suddenly it reads less like pointless insults and more like actual points.

Additionally, if we consider that Wei Wuxian is a disciple of the sect who goes around and raises the ire of the Wen clan, corporal punishment suddenly looks very normal (again, within the culture). Hence, when I watched the donghua and CQL, I hated seeing Wei Wuxian getting whipped, but I didn’t perceive this as abuse—especially because of the political nature of the decision.

But it is definitely still possible to mistreat a disciple.

In CQL, you see Madam Yu throwing an unnecessary amount of vitriol at Wei Ying. In the novel extras, it’s revealed that she regularly whipped him but never whipped the other disciples, indicating that it wasn’t normal corporal punishment. She also whipped him for absurdly stupid reasons. To me, this signals that she tended to abuse her authority over him. Even if you don’t view her as an abusive mother to Wei Ying, it’s fair to read her as an abusive authority figure.

Importantly however, “abuse” is a loaded word suggesting a violation of social norms, and again, the situation is complicated because the social norms of the setting don’t match those of the modern world. Madam Yu is not overstepping her bounds as master of Lotus Pier—hence, people do not think very much of this treatment in-universe, including Wei Ying himself.

Madam Yu, Jiang Cheng, and Jiang Yanli

Okay, when I first watched CQL, I cringed when Madam Yu started dragging her family because she sounded like My Actual Chinese Mother. I felt for a second like I had transmigrated into Jiang Cheng’s body and I was experiencing his agony firsthand!

Madam Yu reads very realistically, and I think this is why it gets personal for a lot of Chinese people when this fandom discusses her character. Yes, she belittles and hurts her children for their perceived failures, but many Chinese people can tell you that this is just a common parenting style. And while it might look like bullying to an outsider, this behaviour is usually motivated by love. It is often also motivated by fear that the child’s future will be substandard. This is textually obvious when you consider what exactly Madam Yu yells about:

THIS IS THE ONE I'M WRITING WITH @bideroo AND I'M SO FREAKING EXCITED ABOUT IT!!!

I dunno if we're up to excerpts yet (I should've checked before listing it probably whoops) BUT I can tell you that the tags will include something along the lines of: modern with magic AU, epistolary, meddlesome brothers, matchmaking macguffins, bonding over petty vendettas

Jiang Wanyin is drunk, Lan Zhan eventually comes to realize. He watches him from across the table in an attempt to reconcile with this truth. They aren’t within the confines of the Cloud Recesses and Jiang Wanyin is dressed mostly inconspicuously. Consequences for the circumstances are therefore unlikely.

So Jiang Wanyin is... drunk. Sitting lopsidedly, his head swaying side to side to a beat that Lan Zhan cannot hear, and smiling. A content smile that fits disarmingly well with his sharp features. His cheeks are flushed, eyes bright. There are a few strands of hair framing his face. Lan Zhan starts, realizing he may be staring a bit too intently.

I will get both myself and Jiang Wanyin through this evening with subtlety and patience. Great patience. And subtlety. We will be very subtle.

Jiang Wanyin is drunk, and Lan Zhan is fine.

Except Jiang Wanyin is now also much, much too close to Lan Zhan’s face.

“I feel like I can see you better like this,” Jiang Wanyin announces, grinning lopsidedly with a look in his eyes that indicates that his behavior is an intentional decision made to bother him.

Lan Zhan stares at him, unimpressed. He has to fight to keep his eyes from crossing.

Jiang Wanyin sighs exaggeratedly, the scent of alcohol drifting into Lan Zhan’s face, and drawls, dialect heavy, “I mean, your expressions are clearer, this way. It’s nice.” He sits back and stretches. “It’s fun to figure out what you’re thinking, you know. Right now, for example,” he lifts his cup to cover his mouth, sharp eyes belying his demeanor, “I think you kind of want me dead.”

Jiang Wanyin is an uninhibited drunk, Lan Zhan observes flatly. Their waiter returns, refilling their pot to Lan Zhan’s chagrin. “So how do these two esteemed patrons know each other?”

Jiang Wanyin points at himself with an affronted frown, as if he is shocked to find that he wasn’t recognized on sight. He opens his mouth to speak, eyebrows furrowed, and Lan Zhan senses that whatever is going to come out of Jiang Wanyin’s mouth will become a hindrance on the subtlety that he has somehow managed to maintain so far.

“San-“ was all he was able to voice before Lan Zhan places the silencing spell on him. Jiang Wanyin mppf’s with a roll of his eyes.

Lan Zhan suppresses a long-suffering sigh before speaking, “Third meeting.”

The waiter blinks vacantly, “Meeting?”

Lan Zhan sits, comprehending his own graceless lie.

Mn. I have made a terrible mistake.

His ears have begun prickling as his words finish sinking in. Lan Zhan imagines this is the feeling a man possessed would experience after being gifted a small shovel and with it dedicating himself to digging an unending pit. Or perhaps a grave. He looks over Jiang Wanyin’s shoulder, unable to make eye contact. “Courtship,” he finally adds, having resigned to lowering himself further into the dirt.

Their waiter smiles indulgently at his answer and retreats, surely taking with him whatever remained of Lan Zhan’s pride.

The silencing spell must have worn off, for Jiang Wanyin yawns and points at him, accusatory. “Lan Wangji, you haven’t been sneaking drinks when I wasn’t looking, have you?” he asks suspiciously.

Lan Zhan, still avoiding eye contact but at least confident in this, replies, “I have not.”

Jiang Wanyin squints at him, “Are you sure?” Lan Zhan knows he would have fallen asleep by now if he had, and so he nods, absently taking note of the cracks in the ceiling.

“Then why are your ears so red?” Jiang Wanyin asks, voice earnestly curious. In the corner of Lan Zhan’s eye he can see that Jiang Wanyin is leaning forward again. He avoids eye contact with him more insistently.

A moment passes. “Lan Wangji, are you listening to me?”

Another moment. “Hanguang-Jun, it’s rude to ignore someone who’s talking to you. Surely that’s one of your rules?”

It is. One copy of Virtue as punishment. The silence stretches, taut. Lan Zhan should have been expecting recoil.

“Gege.” Lan Zhan freezes. He finally turns his head to see Jiang Wanyin grinning triumphantly. He feels his previous embarrassment grow twice its size, creeping down into his shoulders from his ears. “So you heard me that time, huh?”

“I was not ignoring Jiang Wanyin.”

“You were.”

I was. Lan Zhan, in lieu of responding, covers his face with his hands.

“Why are your ears turning even more red, gege?”

“Jiang Wanyin, we are in public,” Lan Zhan says, muffled.

Lan Zhan is suddenly blessed with silence. He can almost see Jiang Wanyin thinking; he imagines it’s another scowl, though with a scholarly dignity and focus.

Xiongzhang would never allow me to forget the amount of time I must have spent with Jiang Wanyin to picture that so vividly.

The energy in the air shifts, faintly colder. “Gege, look at me, please.”

Jiang Wanyin is shaving years off my life. Lan Zhan does not look.

“Please, look at me.”

Lan Zhan’s hands twitch, but he does not look.

“Lan Wangji, please,” and Lan Zhan is only so strong willed, so he moves his hands and he sees...

Jiang Wanyin frowning, though it’s different than before. “Am I that embarrassing to be seen with?” he asks, voice bitter and expression unreadable.

It is very sudden, the way Lan Zhan feels profoundly lost. “Jiang Wanyin is not embarassing.”

Jiang Wanyin takes another pause. He looks up at the ceiling, jaw clenched, and Lan Zhan can see now that he was right about Jiang Wanyin’s thinking scowl.

A hiccup punctures the silence, and Lan Zhan is reminded with a sharp jolt that Jiang Wanyin is drunk. He would not be so forthcoming otherwise. He feels as if his head has just surfaced above water.

Jiang Wanyin huffs, face turned down now, his face relaxing but eyes remaining sharp. Lan Zhan almost doesn’t hear him when he asks, startlingly quiet, “Lan Wangji, I don’t think I really hate you.”

Lan Zhan tenses, panicked. “Jiang Wanyin.”

Jiang Wanyin continues unhindered, a warped smile taking the place of his previous frowns, “I don’t think I want you to hate me, either. I’m scared that,” he laughs scornfully, “I’m scared that I’ll become so cruel and unpleasant that no one will care enough to uncover the parts of me that are worth knowing anymore.”

The words remain simmering in the humid evening air, and Lan Zhan is horrified to see tears rolling down Jiang Wanyin’s cheeks. Lan Zhan carefully eases his cup, now empty, away from the teardrops on the table.

“I don’t hate Jiang Wanyin,” Lan Zhan states, as gently as he can. “Not going anywhere.”

Jiang Wanyin looks up, although Lan Zhan can’t be sure that Jiang Wanyin really sees him through the tears that are still spilling down his cheeks.

Jiang Wanyin is very beautiful, says his useless brain, even through the pang of sympathy that lances through his chest. Two copies of Virtue.

Jiang Wanyin whispers mournfully, “I don’t want A-Ling to grow to resent me.”

A lump forms in Lan Zhan’s throat, suffocating. “He will not. Jiang Wanyin is doing a good job. He will know that Jiang Wanyin is doing a good job.”

And though it may speak more to Jiang Wanyin’s lack of sobriety than Lan Zhan’s choice of words, Jiang Wanyin smiles. An open expression that Lan Zhan shouldn’t get used to seeing. An open expression that Lan Zhan wants to get used to seeing.

Jiang Wanyin is truly very beautiful. Three copies.

And then Jiang Wanyin slams a hand on the table, startling Lan Zhan out of his (foolish) stupor, and stands on shaking legs. “Well, I’m exhausted and never want to think about any of this ever again! Good night, Lan Wangji,” he announces, too loud for the establishment, and for a moment Lan Zhan is convinced that he’ll make it to his room in one piece.

It is a brief moment, however, because after one strong first step Jiang Wanyin begins to list to his right and Lan Zhan moves quickly to steady him.

Jiang Wanyin frowns up at him, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. Bright eyes. There’s more hair framing his face than before, curling slightly. “Lan Wangji, if you don’t stand me up I’m going to fall asleep here.”

Lan Zhan blinks. His face must be turning red as well, with how warm he feels. “Mn.”

Jiang Wanyin is back on his feet for what must be no less than a few heartbeats before he attempts another unsupported step forward.

...

Ask for help, Jiang Wanyin.

The man in question sways a little on his feet before turning around, huffing out a sigh, and asking, with great difficulty, “...Gege, can you help me get to bed?”

Lan Zhan glances outside, sees the moon rising over the hills. It would be best if I buried myself now.

He then looks back at Jiang Wanyin, who is watching him with bright eyes and half curled hair and flushed cheeks, and wonders with great solemnity how and when it was that he began to compromise his pride.

However long ago the waiter last left our table, perhaps.

This is to say that Lan Zhan is holding Jiang Wanyin up by his arms and walking them towards the stairs before he can even ask the innkeeper if they have a shovel.

He gets them up half a flight of stairs before Jiang Wanyin, apparently having processed Lan Zhan’s embarrassment from before, looks up at him and, no longer keeping up a sober appearance in the privacy of the stairwell, mumbles, “So you intend to court me, Lan Wangji? I hope you know,” he stops and heaves a long sigh, “that I won’t make it easy for you.”

Lan Zhan continues walking them both upwards, too focused on their upward momentum to allow himself the shame. Just make fun of me directly, Jiang Wanyin.

They stand together now, more or less, in front of the door to Jiang Wanyin’s room.

Lan Zhan is not going to answer Jiang Wanyin.

He opens the door and gracelessly maneuvers them in. Jiang Wanyin does him the favor of sitting of his own volition, the bed holding his weight silently. As gently as he can without being indecent, Lan Zhan pulls off his boots. Removes his hair pin, taking the time to untangle some of the knots that had formed over the day of travel. Carefully lays him on his side.

Jiang Wanyin will forget.

And yet, “I do know,” Lan Zhan says, wearily accepting that Jiang Wanyin turns him into a fool that simply can’t not say the most embarrassing things that come to mind.

Jiang Wanyin is fighting to keep his eyes open now that he’s in bed, but he looks up at Lan Zhan and hums inquisitively, “Mm?”

if lwj were to say ‘fuck’ once in the entire duration of mdzs/cql

Like for many of us, 2020 has been absolute hell for me. One bright spot was falling into the Mo Dao Zu shi rabbit hole and figuring out, oh, so that’s what’s up with all the gorgeous fanart. And fic! MDZS has attracted some amazingly talented writers, a number of whom have also made their marks in the Drarry fandom. Though the canonical ship (Wei Wuxian/Lan Wangji) has captivated the lion’s share of fandom attention, my heart belongs to Jiang Cheng/Lan Xichen (Xicheng). These 12 fics are some of the reasons why. They all feature Xicheng as a main ship, and I’m biased towards densely plotted longfics. As always, these are my own opinions, YMMV. Mind the tags, though there’s nothing spicier than M on the list.

Some Xicheng fanon observations:

Jiang Cheng is a good correspondent.

Jiang Cheng has a good signing voice.

Jiang Cheng is good at calligraphy.

Lan Xichen calls Jiang Cheng “My heart.” 

The Recs

10 RMB lucky chickens (T, 25.1K) by Raitelzen.  This was a love story between a pair of right cocks.

Not on Jiang Cheng’s watch.

(The one where Jiang Cheng’s a PhD chlamydia researcher; Lan Xichen’s the NEET social recluse who moves in next door; and they come together because Jiang Cheng’s pet chicken Wei Cluckxian won’t stay out of Lan Xichen’s chicken Wingji’s coop).

Wangxian get bunnies and Xicheng get…chickens? Part thriller, part urban farmers-to-lovers, Xicheng find love with the assistance of their magical, matchmaking roosters.

All his life, he had been drowning (T, 62.7K) by guardian_of_jupiter. The spiral of his thoughts drained him further. The fire of determination had been snuffed out within him and Jiang Wanyin was out of reasons to keep on fighting. As he lay down on his bed, he dreamt of life without all of these feelings he had struggled all his life. He wanted to get away from himself and from how draining his life was. But he knew he couldn’t do that if he kept surrounding himself with the people and places that reminded him of those feelings.

Here, in Lotus Pier, the memories of his inadequacy in so many ways suffocated him slowly and constantly throughout his life. All his life, he had been drowning. Eventually, he knew he would stop struggling to stay afloat and just let the water swallow him.

This place was going to kill him.

The best way I can describe this fic is a love letter to Jiang Cheng. When JC suddenly disappears from the cultivation world, Lan Xichen agrees to leave seclusion to track down the missing sect leader. Over the course of his investigation, LXC finds himself falling in love with the man he realized he never really knew. Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian face real consequences for how they treat JC, a take I found refreshing.          

A Bit of Ruthlessness (M, 110K) by jirluvien. When Jiang Cheng hears that Lan Xichen went into seclusion following Jin Guangyao’s death, it’s almost as if he can see the grabby hands of a restless ghost, reaching out for something to keep him company. For something warm and living and devastated. And as history has proven time and time again, the Lans are perfect victims when it comes to giving in to ghosts.

Yeah, no. Not on Jiang Cheng’s fucking watch.

A story about grief, determination, unexpected friendships, abandoned watchtowers, and letters. So many letters.

This fic is overall phenomenal, but its characterizations of JC and LXC place it in a league of its own. Funny enough, the author note describes them as a “sour grape and a himbo,” but there is so much nuance. Lots about the complexities of family, Lan Qiren with a sense of humor, and an unlikely bromance between Song Lan and Ouyang Zizhen. Sensitive exploration of asexuality. And this line: You are the morning to my night, and I would rather be torn apart by you than never see another dawn. 😢

Disregarding Public Interest (or How Everyone Except Lan Xichen and Jiang Cheng Knew They Were Together (T, 34.8K) by monoquist. In which Jiang Cheng proves that he has more in common with his adopted brother than just a shared upbringing, and Lan Wangji discovers the joys of shipping his brother with someone else.

All! The! Fluff! No conflict, everyone loves each other (though Lan Qiren comes close to qi deviating a few times). One of my favorite tropes.

Fire (G, 49.2K) by Noppoh. “Then I believe that there is only one possibility left,” Lan Qiren said. “We need the fire of a Three-legged Crow, a SanZuWu.”

Jin Zixuan started laughing. “You want us to shoot down the sun? The actual sun? Ha! Sunshot campaign indeed!”

Lan Qiren glared at him and Jin Zixuan offered him an apologetic bow while still trying to hide his laughter.

“I guess you are all familiar with the legend of Hou Yi? He shot down nine Three-legged Crows and they fell to the earth. One survived.”

A unique AU in which the Jiang sect are the guardians of a mythical three-legged crow known as the SanZuWu. After the Sunshot Campaign, Lan Xichen is tasked with tracking down the hidden sect and asking for assistance in destroying the Yin Metal. A very sweet getting together fic unlike any other on this list and containing no Wangxian.

zhancheng supremacy :] quick note I’m really pretty picky abt the fics I read so here’s a quick comprehensive “list” of exactly two fics by the same author

‘Upon These Ashes, We Build’ - Bideroo on ao3

- I read this super quick one morning and it gave me the BIGGEST serotonin boost probably ever. just like ! zhancheng bonding and jiang cheng stealth courting lan zhan. it’s very good I liked it :] a little over 6000 words

https://archiveofourown.org/works/26901472#main

‘Getting Hitched: A Foray into Better Sectual Relations’ - Bideroo AGAIN bc their zhancheng is just MWAH

- jiang cheng suggests that he and lan wangji get married because he needs the support of another sect. lan zhan rolls with it. they fall in love. there’s a small bit of nsfw in the later chapters, just a heads up. around 21000 words, 10 chapters

I haven’t made one of these in a while, because I was reading HQ fics mostly very busy, but since it’s a Thursday and there are no leaks, I thought it would be a good time to put the ones I have out there…

A Work of Fiction by Bideroo  (TDBK, one-shot) - I came across this one via an artwork post and honestly I have no idea how I ever missed this in the first place. It’s so much fun watch Bakugou get frustrated about Shouto becoming a bit obsessed with a fan-made manga of, well, them. Shoutout to Izuku, enabler extraodinaire!!!!

“what’s your type?” by sapphicflower (BKDK, very long one-shot) I’m kind of obsessed with fics where BKDK mind-melding, knowing each other inside out is played upon. This fic puts them into a 10-question type game show, which is a cool setting for it. 

Friends Come and Go, but Fandom is Forever by Erina - (BKDK, oneshot) The Mis-Adventures of the Explodokill Agency continue, featuring Todoroki as the agent of chaos, creating a bkdk shipping twitter account.