mdzs rough timeline
this isn’t meant to be definite! I’m mostly posting this so that @thewickling can take a look and see if there’s anything helpful in here while she finishes crafting her frankly incredibly referenced timeline. or so we can debate finer points lmao, though she definitely has the upper hand on research.
here’s what I have put together, though the dates used are re: Lan Wangji’s age, not in relation to Wei Wuxian’s death. Things I’m unsure about are marked with (?), and there are a lot of events that could take place in a range of dates that I’ve kind of just stuck in there for the sake of having them marked. I haven’t cross-referenced this in a while, and it’s working largely off of memory ;;; I just edited a bunch of this on the fly in the text editor HAHA so this may be off in several ways. I may eventually edit this into something more cohesive, but for now. have this mess.
Notes:
Mass Graves” = Yiling Burial Mound Jinlin Tai = Koi/Carp Tower I’m using both novel and audio drama as canon, plus some assorted bits of memory re: mxtx interviews
Approximate Timeline (using Lan Wangji’s age, starting with lectures at Gusu):
Year 15:
Lectures at Cloud Recesses
Year 16:
Wei Wuxian harasses the Poetry Florist lady (?)
Wen Ning meets Wei Wuxian at Qishan (?)
Meng Shi dies (?)
Meng Yao is kicked down the stairs of Jinlin Tai (?)
Year 17:
Burning of the Cloud Recesses
Lan Xichen flees and takes shelter with Meng Yao (currently working as a bookkeeper)
Indoctrination at Qishan (unclear amount of time: few days to a month?)
Xuanwu Cave (approx. 1 week)
Qingheng-jun dies and Lan Xichen becomes sect leader of Gusu
Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng return to Lotus Pier (unclear amount of time passes: few days to a month)
Massacre at Lotus Pier
Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng flee to Yiling with Wen Ning’s help
Golden Core transfer
Wei Wuxian is thrown into the Mass Graves for three months
Sunshot Campaign starts in earnest
Meng Yao is appointed Nie Mingjue’s new aide
Wen Xu is killed by Nie Mingjue
Wei Wuxian emerges from the Mass Graves and begins hunting Wen Chao
Wei Wuxian kills Wang Lingjiao
Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng kill Wen Chao and Wen Zhuliu
Lan Xichen speaks to Meng Yao regarding his ambition
Meng Yao sets off to meet up with his father’s sect in Langya
Nie Mingjue visits Jin Guangshan and asks after him only to discover JGS has not seen Meng Yao
Nie Mingjue discovers Meng Yao killing Lanling cultivators—Meng Yao flees
Year 19?:
Sunshot Campaign finally arrives at Qishan: Meng Yao assassinates Wen Ruohan
Meng Yao is recognized as Jin Guangshan’s son and given the courtesy name Jin Guangyao
3zun swear blood brotherhood
Year 20:
Nighthunt at Phoenix Mountain (in the audio drama, S3E01, Wei Wuxian mentions that he is 20+ years old at this point)
Lan Wangji goes to Yunmeng and meets Wei Wuxian (flower throwing episode)
Opinions about Wei Wuxian begin truly shifting now that Sunshot is largely over
Four Sects continue hunting down the Wen remnants
Wei Wuxian runs into Wen Qing who begs for his help saving Wen Ning
Confrontation with Jin Zixun at Jinlin Tai
Qiongqi Dao 1.0: Wei Wuxian flees with the Wen Remnants to the Mass Graves
Mianmian leaves Lanling Jin sect in defense of Wei Wuxian
Jiang Cheng goes to the Mass Graves and confronts Wei Wuxian: they set a duel and declare him exiled
After some months, Lan Wangji arrives in Yiling and brings news of Jiang Yanli’s upcoming wedding
Wen Ning regains consciousness
Wei Wuxian has a first family meal with the Wen remnants
Jiang Yanli and Jiang Cheng visit; Wei Wuxian names his future nephew
Jiang Yanli and Jin Zixuan are married
Year 21:
Jin Ling is born
Wei Wuxian is invited to his one month ceremony and begins working on his present
Qiongqi Dao 2.0: Jin Zixun and Jin Zixuan are killed
Three days later, Wen Qing and Wen Ning turn themselves in to protect Wei Wuxian and the rest
Lan Wangji speaks in defense of Wen Ning and Wen Qing
Wen Ning loses control and begins killing people at Lanling
Wen Qing is executed; Wen Ning is imprisoned
Wei Wuxian rushes to Lanling to try and retrieve their remains and hears about the plans to besiege the Mass Graves
Wei Wuxian goes to Qishan directly and confronts the sects for their hypocrisy
Wei Wuxian loses control and Jiang Yanli is killed
Lan Wangji takes Wei Wuxian and hides him away in a cave, defends him against 33 of his elders
Lan Wangji takes Wei Wuxian back to the Mass Graves
Lan Wangji returns to Gusu and is punished with 33 blows from the discipline whip and bedridden
First Siege of the Mass Graves: Wei Wuxian is killed by demonic backlash; the Wen remnants are massacred and thrown into the Blood Well (except A’Yuan, who hides in a tree)
Lan Wangji drags himself to Yiling to search for Wei Wuxian, finds only A’Yuan, whom he brings back to Gusu and gives the name Sizhui
Year 22:
Jin Guangyao marries Qin Su (?)
*Xue Yang massacres the Yueyang Chang clan
Xiao Xingchen takes him into custody
Jin Guangshan insists on keeping Xue Yang
Mo Xuanyu is invited to study at Lanling
Jin Guangyao begins playing guqin for Nie Mingjue
Xue Yang massacres Baixue Ge and blinds Song Lan
Xiao Xingchen takes Song Lan to Baoshan Sanren and gives him his eyes
Xiao Xingchen disappears
Xiao Xingchen meets A’Qing
Xiao Xingchen and A’Qing take in Xue Yang and begin living in Yi City
Nie Mingjue qi deviates
Jin Rusong is born
*Yueyang Chang massacre is stated to take place 10 years prior to the present, which would put it at year 24, but Jin Guangshan must be alive for at least a time afterwards—Jin Guangshan’s death is stated to take place 11 years prior to the present, which puts it at year 23. I’m prioritizing JGS’s death, because Lan Wangji describes the tragedy of Xiao Xingchen as taking place 1-2 years after Wei Wuxian’s death (being bedridden, he cannot pursue the issue), thus it makes sense that YYC massacre takes place earlier than stated.
Year 23:
Jin Guangshan is killed
Mo Xuanyu banished from Lanling (?)
Year 25:
Song Lan comes to Yi City and is killed
Xiao Xingchen commits suicide
A’Qing is killed by Xue Yang
Year 26(?):
Jin Rusong is killed
Year 34 (Present Day):
Mo Xuanyu sacrifices his body to Wei Wuxian
Events at Mo Village
Dafan Shan; run into Jin Ling and Jiang Cheng; Wen Ning appears
Lan Wangji takes Wei Wuxian back to the Cloud Recesses
Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji set off on their quest to find all the body parts
Jin Ling at the Nie clan’s saber hall
Nie Huaisang shares information
Jiang Cheng catches Wei Wuxian; Jin Ling lies about Wen Ning and frees Wei Wuxian
Wei Wuxian takes on Jin Ling’s curse mark
Wei Wuxian frees Wen Ning from the influence of the nails
Yi City
Drunk Lan Wangji part 1
Nie Mingjue’s body assembles itself and attacks without a head
Lan Xichen shows up
Discussion conference at Jinlin Tai
Wei Wuxian finds Nie Mingjue’s head and an address in Yunping
Qin Su commits suicide
Wei Wuxian’s identity is revealed and he and Lan Wangji flee to Gusu
Wei Wuxian, Lan Wangji and Lan Xichen search for the music Jin Guangyao was playing
Lan Xichen tells Wei Wuxian the story of their parents
Jin Guangyao tells Lan Xichen that Wei Wuxian has kidnapped children in Yiling
Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji go to Yiling to rescue the kids; meet Wen Ning along the way
The adults arrive afterwards and Su She’s plot is revealed
Wei Wuxian makes himself into bait, the Wen remnants rise from the Blood Well and save him and the kids
Wen Ning realizes who Lan Sizhui is
Everyone travels to Yunmeng
Sisi and Bicao share their stories
Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji have a confrontation with Jiang Cheng; Wen Ning reveals the Golden Core situation
Wei Wuxian, Lan Wangji and Wen Ning travel to Yunping
Drunk Lan Wangji part 2
Final confrontation at the Guanyin temple
Approximate relative ages at the start of the story, as I understand them: Wei Wuxian: 15 Lan Wangji: 15 Jiang Cheng: 15 Nie Huaisang: 15 Jin Zixuan: 15/16 (I like to think 16) Jiang Yanli: 17/18 Lan Xichen: 18 (at most) Nie Mingjue: 19/20 Wen Ning: 13/14
