I’m not done talking about Beware of Chicken, actually. This book has a thruple that is only subtext by the skin of its fucking teeth and only subtext if you have no critical reading skills (character A referring to character B as his wife while character D tells character A and C to have a nice time on their date. A making a comment about ‘it’s nice to come home after visiting other hen’s coops’ and then realizes it sounds like he went and sleep around while B and C turn to ‘give him the gimlet eye’)
Like, the only reason I call it subtext and not just textual is because the text does not explicitly state that the three of them are in a romantic relationship and I know how the reading comprehension on this webbed site is.
And yet there are no jealousy arcs, no double dealing, none of that bullshit. Just wholesome polyamory.
Then it has another thruple explicitly stated in a flashback where we get this one ancient emperor’s whole life story from his POV.
And to FURTHER make my poly little heart beat in paroxysms of joy, the main character (Jin) has the best most badass wonderful wife (Meiling)…and Meimei will not stop flirting with the cultivator woman (Xiulan) who is repeatedly described as the most beautiful woman anyone has ever seen. Like “You are always welcome in our bed, Xiulan,” and “I’ll get you in my bed one day!” And just a constant tease and flirt while Jin just sighs and allows random strangers to think Xiulan is his wife so they don’t treat her like a piece of ass - which leads to his own wife getting mistaken for the maid and she never gets mad about this, just eggs them on. She is GUNNING for this poly triad or at LEAST to have a second partner herself.
Meanwhile, Xiulan is SO ace-coded (to me). Possibly also aro-coded, but I’m not gonna stake my life on it. She just rolls her eyes at Meimei or she and Jin team up to tease Meimei, and then she snuggles with her in the bath while they take an opportunity to ogle Jin together. This is the slowest of slow burns and if something isn’t canonized I’m eat my phone. Everyone who meets them (who knows Meimei is the wife) assumes Xiulan is his concubine - even her own father!
I do not often see this much positive poly representation in such a wholesome book and I squeal every time it happens. There is so much more but I want y’all to read it yourselves.
