#wen indoctrination

Wei Wuxian stretching in preparation for the very strenuous task of pissing off Wen Chao

Wen Chao, developing a tension headache:

legend

LEGEND

oh fuck they hit his broken leg wtf!! how could he even stand up after that?

protecting his Wei Ying despite his injury

PROTECTING HIS LAN ZHAN DESPITE HIS INJURIES

Of course they were! Opportunistic bastards. But by this standard, Wen Chao shouldn't have used Jin Zixuan and Mianmian as human shields, unless of course he is the backstabbing, untrustworthy worm that he is.

Surrendering their swords to the Wen: Wei Wuxian, Nie Huaisang, Jiang Cheng, Lan Wangji, aaaaaaand......... Jin Zixuan

Nie Huaisang, happy to have an excuse not to carry his sword around: 🤗

Nie Huaisang, immediately: shit, da-ge is going to murder me

Let's review the following scene with the knowledge that swords are phallic symbols.

When Wen Chao takes them firstly we learn that he is heavily compensating for something (I don't necessarily mean size, but rather he's so agressive because he's subordinate to his father and has to balance that by behaving like this) and we can see how each character reacts to being emasculated in this way.

WWX offering his sword jovially. Keep in mind this is the man who joked that he gave birth to aYuan. (he obviously doesn't want to give his sword up but that's a given for everyone, it's how he handles having to). He's not uncomfortable on a psychological level to do this. Non binary King I say. (However I'll be making the opposite point later when he stops carrying his sword and is obviously bothered by everyone asking why he doesn't have it, but that's different because then it'll be the actual ability he won't have, not the sword)

Cheng goes next, doesn't like it but does it

What extreme self control we see here! WWX & Cheng both had a moment before handing their swords over, when they would grasp them harder before letting them go. I think it's safe to say that this whole thing is the hardest on Lan Zhan, mostly because his clan was just decimated and this is a reminder of how powerless he was/is to stop that, but also because he's the proudest and most reserved character, he doesn't like to be close to people or be touched by them so this is even more personal and invasive to him than to anyone else, YET his hand doesn't grasp his sword. Amazing self control. Powerful. Poetic cinema. We can see it on his face how much he hates it but you wouldn't see it on his hand.

Here here, here's my penis symbol sir, I didn't know what to do with it anyway sir.

Not this guy!! Over his dead body. Unless his sister tells him to do it. He's all about family. He won't give up the sword because Jin clan members always carry them. He sees his purpose primarily through his duties to his clan and family. Even his last words will be about how much he respects and how important he knows the familial relationship between WWX and Jiang Yanli is.

Cheng is already like "don't help him he's not worth the effort"

and WWX is like "you don't have all the facts

Cheng: Which are?

WWX: I love him

This is some Frodo & Sam level of devotion. WWX would carry LWJ to Mordor the cave of the tortoise of slaughter if he could and he did

wuliao this wuliao that but not much later this happens:

He's carrying him 💙 albeit on the wrong side...it's his other leg that's injured my dudes how didn't you think of this