There are some major differences between the first and second siege and it’s ultimately not in how Wei Wuxian handled things.
During the first siege was Wei Wuxian bitter, angry and resentful I won’t say he wasn’t. But even someone like Wei Wuxian who doesn’t hold onto resentment and grudges is it possible to never feel these emotions at all?
It wasn’t that he couldn’t endure others’ harsh tongues and nasty words. After all, when he had first made his decision, he had understood perfectly clearly the kind of road that lay ahead. His mind had long reminded him: remember the motto of the Yunmeng Jiang Clan—“attempt the impossible.” Only, he had believed his heart to be an unmovable stone. Yet, in the end, humans were not rocks or vegetation.
Until what happened at Q Path and the ambush Wei Wuxian put up with a lot and NEVER harmed or bothered anyone despite all the horrible rumors that were spread about him. He just tries to stay away and do his best for the people under his care. Wei Wuxian is spoken as though he is a monster but he is a human and there is only so much a human being can take before they snap which is ultimately what happened at Nightless City.
A series of cheers exploded through the crowd. Jin GuangShan raised his hands, signaling for the people to be quiet and listen to him talk. When the cheers slowly died down, he continued, raising his voice, “Tonight, the ones whose ashes had been scattere were the two leaders of the Wen Sect‟s remnants. And tomorrow! It will be the rest of the Wen-dogs and—the YiLing Patriarch, Wei Ying!”
And yes Wei Wuxian is very bitter and angry when he arrives at Nightless City but even then he does not go straight for the attack. He still does try to point out he was ambushed at Q Path
Wei WuXian, “Then let me ask you, Sect Leader Jin, at Qiongqi Path, who was the one being ambushed? And who was the one to kill? Who was the main schemer? And who was the one being schemed against? In the end, just who was the one that came to provoke me first?”
But no one there cares and even reasons that Wei Wuxian is the cruel one for fighting back
Hidden among such a large crowd, the disciples inside of the arrays all felt rather safe. Bravening up, they shouted, “Even if Jin ZiXun was the one who schemed to ambush you first, you shouldn‟t have been so heartless and kill so many lives!”
Wei Wuxian’s words mean absolutely nothing. To add to this JGS accuses him of causing Wen Ning to attack at Koi Tower but as we know from interviews by MXTX this was another thing that JGS set up. What does it matter though whatever Wei Wuxian is accused of he will be condemned for.
But as Wei Wuxian points out even if they want to say he is guilty what about the innocent people of the Burial Mounds why are they planning to kill them?
Wei WuXian, “The fifty cultivators on Burial Mound are also innocent, so why do you have to involve them?”
Someone else spat, “Just what great kindness has the Wen-dog given you? To have you be on those scum‟s side like this.”
“In my opinion, there isn‟t any great kindness at all. It‟s just that he thinks he‟s a hero fighting against the entire world. He thinks he‟s doing an act of justice, that he himself is quite an impressive person, risking everyone‟s condemnation!”
So nothing Wei Wuxian says matters at all. Not only are these people seeking his death for crimes he supposedly committed they don’t care that the people of the Burial Mounds are innocent they are Wens and that is enough to condemn them as well
This back and forth goes on for some time until a Cultivator shoots an arrow at Wei Wuxian which misses and Wei Wuxian throws it back killing the Cultivator. It’s not Wei Wuxian who attacks first.
Jin GuangShan ordered, “Set up the battle arrays, set up the battle arrays! We won‟t let him leave here alive no matter what!”
With the order, the stalemate was finally broken. Carrying swords and arrows, many disciples rushed toward the ceiling of the palace They finally attacked first!
Jiang Yanli’s death is tragic and adds a personal tragedy for Wei Wuxian the same way Jin Zixuan’s death did but it’s not like in either of these cases Wei Wuxian came out and started killing indiscriminately. He is being attacked in both cases. Nightless City is framed as him attacking 3000 cultivators when in reality it’s 3000 people gathering getting ready to attack One Person and the innocent people of the Burial Mounds. Jin Zixuan’s death was an accident and Jiang Yanli sacrificed herself to save Wei Wuxian. But Wei Wuxian did not start either of the fights in which these two are killed in the crossfire.
As for the second siege on the Burial Mounds there is a major major difference. Besides the fact that Wei Wuxian does not have the responsibility of 50 innocent lives on his shoulders
But...Wei WuXian looked slightly to the side. He saw Lan WangJi, who stood beside him, without any hint of hesitation, any thought of withdrawing. But, this time, he wasn‟t alone anymore.
The people finally realized what was going on. It seemed that whenever someone tried to argue with Wei WuXian, Lan WangJi would seal their lips.
I think having someone strong on his side where he doesn’t have to face these things alone of course would give him better options than what he had in the past. In the past he was given no better options.
Also if the lesson is violence is never the answer after the first siege Lan Wangji decides it’s the right thing to do to stand against his own Sect and protect Wei Wuxian. Some people think Lan Wangji only did this because he loves Wei Wuxian but MXTX makes it clear this is not the case. That Lan Wangji stood up for Wei Wuxian even against the elders of his Clan because he had been watching Wei Wuxian all this time and believed and trusted in him. According to the rules this might have been wrong but according to Lan Wangji’s own moral code it was the right thing to do. Twitter thread for context https://twitter.com/reviewsnana/status/1473677987543453708?s=21
As for violence not being the best answer maybe that is so but I think it’s more important to examine the circumstances that lead him there and why in his second life he was able to make better choices. In the Prolouge we are told that Wei Wuxian did all these horrible things but in reality he was the victim who was set up to fail because he tried to save innocent people. He wasn’t just set up by people like JGS who coveted his power but also by his Shidi calling him the “Enemy of the Cultivation World” and isolating him.
On the other hand in his second life Wei Wuxian has Lan Wangji by his side protecting him. Lan Wangji’s reputation will supposedly be ruined if he sides with Wei Wuxian but this never really happens. Some may argue that it was too easy for Lan Wangji but I would argue that it’s because Lan Wangji never wavers in his decision to support and stand by Wei Wuxian’s side that they are able to reach a happy ending. Lan Wangji doesn’t care about his reputation what he cares about is doing the right thing which to him is standing by Wei Wuxian. And with Lan Wangji by his side Wei Wuxian is able to reach a better outcome at the second siege of the Burial Mounds.
