A thought I had this morning in the shower, shower thoughts if you will. Why do so many fics have the Wen siblings giving each other looks when WWX is invited to the 100 day celebration (was it 100 day or 30 day?), like we know it's a trap but we can't possibly tell the man in danger it's a trap. I honestly feel like if any of them genuinely thought it was a trap, then he wouldn't have gone. I feel like people think it was obvious, but I think they underestimate how kind people don't usually fathom cruelty especially when there's no precedent of hostility. Like I'm always baffled when someone doesn't like me or wish for my failure when we haven't even interacted, because that's not the type of person I am, so I can't fathom someone being so miserable to hate on me when I think my life isn't all that great. I suspect WWX was of the same mind, he's living in poverty on a burial mound, who would be plotting against him. He had no way of knowing that people were working behind the scenes, and it's weird that people think they'd be so much smarter and prepared if they were in his shoes with no knowledge of anything they read/watched about the story.
This was longer than I expected. If you read this far, I hope you are in good health, eating yummy food, and have a wonderful May. 💕
I think some readers just think being the audience and having an almost unlimited omnipotent access to the events in the plot, automatically must mean the characters do as well. The audience may have the privilege of more information than the characters, but that is simply meant to be a tool of tension for readers to continue reading a plot where much of the story has already had conclusions.
This carries into the purposely obfuscated facts, some that are answered, as this narrative at its core is a mystery. Those that aren't answered are interestingly read into with the worst intent.
The recent debacle of the Lan parents being one. Fandom ironically only had the opinion of Lan Xichen, a third party. Due to his own biases, many which are a reflection of what he views in Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian's romantic ventures being completely one sided and taken advantage of, and therefore negative towards the unknowns he doesn't want to know to begin with.
Fandom chooses to go along with the idea that Lan Xichen is correct, even though there is nothing contextually confirming his view, and later, his bias against Wei Wuxian supposed taking advantage of his brother's love and protection is proven to be outright wrong from its inception, the few sentences edited regarding Madam Lan and Qinghen-jun reiterates this point further. Even at this point of the Lan parents story, Wei Wuxian simply reiterates that the Lans truly are a romantic bunch underneath their regulations and stoicism.
Fandom is the one that chooses to insert darker connotations, or choose to rewrite the work as characters being purposefully portrayed ignorant to "obvious better alternatives" available to them. When the knowledge that they have, which is very human and unspecial, is what drives the plot to what it is.
Humans err, they are not all knowing, and most, unlike what fandom unfortunately likes to fixate on, do hope for the better in others. It's ones that take advantage of that hope that is part of the tragedy of MDZS. Good people are made pariahs and slandered because of jealousy and hate of a few, and the lack of wanting to show any empathy for victims as well as those placed in positions of hardship.
As Wei Wuxian said, he didn't bring up his supposed "good deeds", because it would have been unfair to expect leniency and what is essentially a get out of jail card from the consequences that come from his actions. Yet he served his karma, whatever that may have been. Justice in itself is a very nebulous concept and varies, and that's what makes it dangerous when it comes to mob mentalities, especially when people who lack morality are able to use it to their own advantages. It stops being justice when the impossible is demanded and your life begins to stagnate due to fixations on the unchangeable for what has happened.
It is very easy, and callous, to say "I wouldn't do that" when I have the privilege to have more information than the ones involved.
It is why I personally find "fix it fics" for MDZS more often than not sanctimonious instead of emotionally touching and speaks more about what people think a sense of justice and morals should be on a horrendously shallow level. Especially since these give vastly more empathy to the characters that were unreasonably cruel or, make them seem smarter and more reasonable than the people they helped to ruin. The victims are either silly, stupid, or misunderstood the people who hurt them,if they just thought like them, their lives would have been "better".
