Wei Wuxian's Chenqing @lotusgentianoracle - Tumblr Blog

Why do so many people like to imagine lwj as some sheltered bookish boy who only knows how to navigate his life by following rules, and is otherwise unsure of his views of the world and needed Wwx to help shape his morals or catalyst his rebellious phase? (I know it’s self projection, but still…) He’s confident in his own worldviews and values as much as wwx was when they first met.

This is what mxtx said of Lan wangji :

他（蓝忘机）看事情自有他的一套公正的准则，所以他才会替魏婴辩解，帮温宁说话，对绵绵道谢，甚至最后与蓝家人兵戈相向。在我看来，蓝湛之所以从始至终支持和相信魏婴，不仅仅是因为他喜欢魏婴，更是因为魏婴所做的在他眼里本来就是正确的。换个角度说，正是因为魏婴救绵绵，保温宁，他才会是让蓝湛喜欢的那个魏婴。

Translation : Lan wangji has his own sense of justice, that’s why he defends Wei ying and wen ning, thank mian mian, and even went as far as defying his clan elders. To me, the reason lwj sides with Wei ying and believes him throughout the story is not just the fact he likes Wei ying, it’s also because in his view, Wei Ying’s actions were righteous. In other words, the Wei ying lwj is attracted to is the one who saved mian mian and protected wen ning.

mxtxfanatic

I once again saw the "LWJ isn't really that important to the plot" and I really have to wonder if that take exist because people just don't like the story. They like the flashbacks alright, but the present timeline — the main fucking story! — really isn't explored at all. People would rather see how WWX returns to the toxic environment where he is always berated and called a servant than see him safe and in love with the person who is always by his side. They would claim that actually, JC was right and WWX should have stayed with him forever like he is some commodity to keep, that WWX's sacrifice for JC clearly means that everything revolves around JC. And, because everything in WWX's life is about JC, actually, LWJ is pushed aside and proclaimed "unimportant" to the plot, when he is present literally in every arc and most scenes. And only in the flashbacks his influence on WWX's actions and decisions is minimal. "CQL proved that even without wangxian the story will be the same" yes, if you only think about the story as the flashbacks and nothing beyond them

What’s funny is that cql actually proves that without wangxian, nothing is the same. “Yunmeng siblings” is a cql invention because they had to replace like all of moments where Wei Wuxian relies on Lan Wangji for support with Jiang Yanli, which is why she’s shoehorned into arcs where she doesn’t belong. To add “emotional depth” to Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian’s relationship, Jiang Cheng just cries a lot now so that his evil is “complicated” by his impotent tears. Nothing in the drama matches the novel except for character names and a very, very general timeline of events.

Lan Wangji isn’t important to the plot for people who are functionally illiterate and thus get their understanding of the text through 3-line jokes and picture memes on social media.

mxtxfanatic

Saw your post on how some people think Wei Wuxian is morally grey and it made me laugh. If they think Wei Wuxian is morally grey, what would they think about characters like Hua Cheng and Shen Zechuan? Downright evil? 🤣😭🙏

Hua Cheng? Yes. Unironically.

chosenstarr

One of my unpopular opinions in mdzs is Lan Wangji deserves a better love interest

Wei Wuxian though a good character and person is not that great of love interest. The whole wangxian ship is dependent on lwj’s character only.

halenhusky309

Okay, explain why you think WWX is a bad love interest for Lan Wangji then...

chosenstarr

I don't need to explain anything when Wwx fans themselves explain this by saying Wwx prefers wen ning over Lwj . If lwj even after so much unconditional and undivided support gets with someone like wwx whose affections for him are divided then sorry to say lwj does deserve better.

I am not saying wwx is bad person rather he is perfect human but as a lover? Sucks

jiangwanyinscatmom

Lol, what Wei Wuxian fans even say this? If you mean ones that don't actually understand his character sure, but this is widely mocked by the overarching Wei Wuxian fans, and both this and those people are being stubbornly wrong.

No one but multi shippers that thrive off spite try to say Wen Ning is a viable love interest anyway and are irrelevant to what the actual book and author does and says.

Wei Wuxian is also allowed to have friends, which is Wen Ning. That doesn't mean his affections are "divided".

chosenstarr

I genuinely do not care what kind of fans are saying this but this being a popular thought just shows how much wwx sucks at being a compelling love interest. Lwj with all the undivided loyalty deserves someone with undivided affection.

If fandom thinks wwx can love someone other than lwj than author failed to show how much wwx loved lwj and just proves my point lwj deserves better

jiangwanyinscatmom

This is one whole person... and not at all an overarching experience. You also have no actual proof, other than fandom that loves to be contrarian to argue the author didn't do a well enough job, despite this pair being one of the largest influences in the sphere of Chinese entertainment for the past decade... you aren't proving any point other than you are reactionary and dislike a character by...saying a random person's headcanon proves a fictional character deserves better, and their own post omits actual plot context on several levels of these relationships.

Feel free to say you don't like a ship, but don't use other people's post as some kind of proof while arguing the author didn't do their job. The author did, people are going to ship and insert things that aren't there and completely change the context. Once again, do not use other people's post as proof the actual canon romance is bad, when the book is there with a billion quotes showing how ridiculous this is.

chosenstarr

Okay then prove that post wrong and go reblog with “book proving them wrong” and the people on that posts are agreeing which sounds like author infact didn’t do a gold job. Lwj deserves better whether it’s a love interest or fandom.

mxtxfanatic

So you’re saying that someone must prove someone’s evidence-lacking post wrong or else it is indicative of what the book says “because a lot of people are agreeing with it”??? The post is not the novel! “Fandom popularity” is not the novel either! This fandom ships characters who’ve only treated each other with indifference or active disdain, that doesn’t mean that the novel is the reason why the shipping is happening!

And op doesn’t even say that the novel says this. Op says it is “generally assumed” that everyone is “jealous of Wen Ning because Wei Wuxian prioritizes him.” The only thing op says is in the text is that Wen Ning is described as hot, which big deal since like 90% of the characters are described as hot. Are we gonna argue that Wei Wuxian must have a secret crush on Lan Qiren, too, because they had a combative relationship during the Cloud Recesses arc like Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian were shown to have?

chosenstarr

Tbh none of it changes my point. Wangxian is popular because of “lwj’s love for wwx” . It’s a good novel with good theme and story and wwx is really good character with spine and morals . But none of it helps wangxian “as a ship”

As a ship it’s popular because “lwj waited” , “lwj selflessly protected him” . What has wwx done for lwj as a love interest ever to make him equal to lwj in love department? He was unnecessarily mean to lwj during yllz arc to the point he felt guilty and original novel had him apologise to lwj too. He never was mean to jc even though he was treated as a doormat. Just low self esteem. Lwj deserves someone who can be caring and sweet towards him.

mxtxfanatic

No, none of this changes your point because your point is based on your own feelings and what you hear other illiterate fans who get their novel understanding from fics and popular bloggers say. “Lwj waited” is popular fanon. “Lwj selflessly protected wwx with no reciprocity” is popular fanon. “Wwx did nothing for lwj” is popular fanon. Even your little “wwx was never mean to jc” point thrown in there isn’t true to the story, but again, your opinions aren’t based on what you read from the actual book but from what you read from other people’s opinions. Because if you actually read and comprehended the story, you’d understand that a major theme of the novel and the romance is “I like you for you, not as repayment for whatever debts someone feels lies between us.” Lwj helps wwx in the past timeline because 1) he loves him and 2) it is the right thing to do. Wwx helps lwj in the present timeline 1) he loves him and 2) it is the right thing to do. Lwj does the right thing whether wwx is involved or not, and wwx involves himself in situations that have nothing to do with him, against his own best interests, because lwj is there.

chosenstarr

If wwx was as great as a partner as you claim would so many people be thinking he would choose wen ning over lwj? Majority wouldn’t say lwj would even choose his biological brother over wwx but for wwx it’s everyone over lwj.

Wwx is a weak love partner and doesn’t have passion or anything. He is too involved with others to give lwj undivided attention no matter what you say. The whole relationship is wwx taking from lwj which is cheap. Lwj’s character deserves someone who not only takes but gives to like an equal .

mxtxfanatic

Always “well other people say this,” never “the novel says this.” People can be wrong. A lot of people who speak boldly in fandom spaces haven’t even read the novel. We’re in an illiteracy age where people think they can understand complex stories solely from memes and incorrect quote posts. If you can’t say what was or was not in the novel, then your opinions on what the novel does right/wrong, the weakness of a character, or the strength of the themes or romance don’t matter, because you don’t eve. know! If you or these “many people” wanted to read a story where “MC puts the entire world on hold for love,” then mdzs, a novel decidedly NOT about that is not the novel for you. It is not a “bad romance” just because it doesn’t adhere to your arbitrary categorization of what a “good” romance is. Go read Twilight.

mxtxfanatic

What’s wild is that fandom is so intent on calling Xie Lian “idealistic,” “naive,” or at worst, “just plain stupid” to want to “save everyone,” but… Xie Lian never said that? He said his dream was to save the common people, and whenever he was challenged on that principle as a child, his answer was always, “If I have the resources, it’s my duty to at least try.” He had the means to save a child falling off the city gate tower, so he did. He had the means to bring rain from a distant country for a territory of his kingdom in drought, so he did. He had the means to attempt negotiating with the refugees before they turned rebel, so he did, but the moment that negotiating become unreasonable, he took up arms to prevent as much bloodshed as possible while he thought of another solution. When everything went to shit anyways, he went, “I did what I could, as was my duty,” and it was only when he was tortured to a breaking point did he go, “What I did wasn’t worth it, so I should have done nothing at all and let people suffer without me.” That “I should hoard my resources while others suffer lest I be dragged down with them” mentality is exactly what the villains (Jun Wu, Qi Rong) and the antagonists (Mu Qing, Feng Xin) want Xie Lian to have come away with, that you are always more important than others, that you should never help anyone else if you gain nothing from it and especially if there's a chance that you suffer for it. And that is exactly the mentality that Xie Lian is rewarded for rejecting.

This is literally like the Jiang Clan motto from mdzs: it is not “achieve the impossible,” it is “attempt the impossible.” If you have the means to make a difference but won’t even try because “what if it backfires on me?” then you are a corrupt coward who does not deserve the resources you hoard. Let the money rest with those who give with liberal pockets to the poor, the strength with those who live in defense of the weak, the intelligence with those who think of solutions to ease life for the community as a whole. And let those whose concerns begin and end at their own desires wield only enough power to affect nothing outside of their own solitary life.

truthseeker-800

This is such an intelligent analysis. The pesimistic part of me+the coward part of me finds this all very daunting but I basically agree with everything. It's always better to be kind, and to work hard for the sake of others, whatever that means, no matter a persons situation. Something I'll definitely apply in my own life. There is a part of me that still doesn't like the jiang motto tho. I don't know why but it simply doesn't sit right with me. I think it may be because it encourages the sort of saviour complex that wwx has in the books, at least if taken at face value. I think you should always do what you can for others as long as that doesn't come at the cost of yourself to a detrimental amount, since in the end your the most important person in our own life.

I specifically don't understand this,“seeking to do right even when one knows that failure is imminent” Probably, since I think in an overly logical almost black and white way.What makes more sense to me is to attempt what is incredibly difficult or not tried before, to do what is right.

This specifically, "Let the money rest with those who give with liberal pockets to the poor, the strength with those who live in defense of the weak, the intelligence with those who think of solutions to ease life for the community as a whole. And let those whose concerns begin and end at their own desires wield only enough power to affect nothing outside of their own solitary life," will resonate with me forever.

mxtxfanatic

Wei Wuxian doesn’t have a “savior complex” in mdzs. He does the right thing because he can and his morality says he should. A savior complex would be Jiang Cheng distracting the Wen to help Wei Wuxian, getting caught, and then punishing Wei Wuxian for the aftermath of his actions because he wanted the praise but regretted the negative consequences it had on him. I think you find things like the Jiang motto daunting because you aren’t viewing them in light of the already daunting situation the characters find themselves in.

For example: saving Mianmian was unambiguously the right thing to do that led to a direct consequence for Wei Wuxian (Wang Lingjiao targeting him and attempting to get his arm cut off). But what was the alternative? Let her get bled in front of everyone to attract the xuanwu of slaughter, or let her face be maimed for shits and giggles so that everyone else makes it out the cave except her because—assuming she survives the brand to the face with decent mobility—she can’t swim out? On the other hand, Wei Wuxian rescuing Jiang Cheng from the Wen was the right thing to do even though getting caught would’ve seen him tortured and killed, yet I never see people talking about his “savior complex” when it comes to that. Is it because Wei Wuxian didn’t get caught and thus no one has to think about the consequences of his theoretical failure or because people think that only Jiang Cheng is worth Wei Wuxian risking himself for?

In tgcf, Xie Lian chose to be staked into the coffin by Lang Qianqiu because he deduced that it would be better than breaking a young boy’s heart and encouraging a cycle of hatred that would potentially provoke a genocide (or in the revised, leave an entire city full of malicious ghosts intact to haunt the mortal realm). He participates in the skirmishes on the Yong’an/Banyue frontier and refuses to let his soldiers murder civilians even though he’s turned against for it. He gives up godhood to carry water for his people who are in drought, and he never stops trying to find a solution to this until he physically cannot any longer.

None of these situations are “you’re the most important person in your own life” circumstances because they are bigger than just their personal lives. These are situations that affect whole groups of people, that involve life and death, that include generational cycles of malice and evil. You know what situations these characters don’t choose to sacrifice themselves in? Interpersonal dramas. Xie Lian in no way is overextending himself to save the likes of Qi Rong, Mu Qing, Feng Xin, or whoever else from the consequences of their own actions that have no rippling effects elsewhere. He has no relationship with those folks and so simply does not care (and with Qi Rong, specifically, there is a disdain that settles in after Qi Rong’s malice is made impotent). Wei Wuxian gives up his golden core for Jiang Cheng, but in no way is this the equivalent of risking his life for the other man like going back to Lotus Pier was. After defecting, Wei Wuxian basically rescinds all courtesies and considerations for Jiang Cheng’s safety as an individual, both in the past and present timelines.

In fact, in the larger scenarios that saw them face the worst blowback, neither Wei Wuxian nor Xie Lian did anything that would be considered “risking their lives” when they first undertook the action. Xie Lian descended from the heavens to give his people water; Jun Wu escalated it into a civil war and banishment. Wei Wuxian’s life was already in danger in the indoctrination camp and during the Sunshot Campaign, so helping others didn’t make matters worse. Him rescuing the Wen remnants wasn’t an issue, either; Jiang Cheng escalating it by publicly withdrawing support from him to save his own reputation was, and the Jin escalated that by scheming against him because they didn’t like the idea of a “son of a servant” denying them access to his power. Now, once these situations became “unsalvageable,” did either MC abandon their endeavors? Of course not, and they never would have either, but it’s important to note that almost every situation they found themselves in was either 1) already bad to the point where all they could do was mitigate harm or 2) not actually bad in the beginning until bad actors made the situations irredeemable in retaliation for their authority or bigotry being challenged.

In the end, you can prioritize your own life for fear of negative consequences, but just like courage isn’t guaranteed to save you, neither is fear. So would you rather be remembered as a person who was punished for helping people (Wei Wuxian and Xie Lian), or someone who suffered anyways because they were too afraid to even think about rebelling against the status quo (the Jiang Clan, Nie Mingjue, Mu Qing, Feng Xin, amongst a whole lot of other characters)?

truthseeker-800

Mn, thank you for the correction, my use of saviour complex was incorrect and now that I think about it, not really relevant in this context (at least in the way I meant it.) If I'm correct, what you're saying is that in situations of the scale of life and death or involving a huge variety of people, it is important to step in and help if there is a way you can. These kinds of situations causing harm to most if not all parties involved including oneself, though you of course shouldn't only be motivated by protecting yourself. "but just like courage isn’t guaranteed to save you, neither is fear," makes sense. In which case I definitely agree. I am still confused about one thing tho.

"Wei Wuxian gives up his golden core for Jiang Cheng, but in no way is this the equivalent of risking his life for the other man like going back to Lotus Pier was." How dangerous was the surgery? Because I was under the impression that it was untested and potentially very dangerous, do correct me if I'm wrong

Thank you!

mxtxfanatic

The only thing anyone was at risk for was losing their golden core, which meant that only Wei Wuxian was at any risk. The 50% that Wen Ning mentions was of the transfer failing and both being left without a core, not someone dying during it.

saiaisaiko

Wait really? Where does the chance of dying come from then? I mean the surgery was long and Wei Wuxian had to be concious for the whole time (which is also a can of worms better not opened), but if the only risk was Wei Wuxian losing his Core too and not his life... How did the fandom make a life threatening transplant out of it? Is it because any other time people lost their chore they either died from the shock or lost their will to life?

mxtxfanatic

Jc stans made it up for their little “this is medical malpractice!” arguments to paint Jiang Cheng as a victim of something he benefited from 100% with 0% of the risk. Literally nowhere in the novel does anyone ever say that the risk was death. Yeah Wei Wuxian had to stay awake for the surgery, but that’s cause they needed him to keep his golden core in a physical state, which it would not have been had he been unconscious. It was a torturous procedure, not a deadly one.

mxtxfanatic

thank you for your posts about how you read the works for the main character(s)! I usually drop the novel if I find the main character/couple unsatisfying, even if I love the rest of the cast, but it's not a sentiment shared among many ppl for some reason lol

lately I've been really annoyed by this notion among lwj haters that "you can take lwj out of the story and nothing changes", probably bc takes like this one aren't new and they've been popular in fandom for a very long time. takes like "lwj is nothing but a love interest" and "mdzs would've been a better novel without romance, just as a murder mystery" is nothing new and the "taking lwj out" take is, I think, a logical continuation of them. but ppl who claim this... I don't think they understand that you can literally say this about any character, even their faves — in this case jc lol. you can delete all of jc's appearances after wwx's resurrection and the plot won't change lol. yes, he is integral to the golden core subplot but in the present timeline his role is so miniscule that he could've died after the first siege and nothing would've changed. you can even take out the whole yi city arc and nothing would've changed

but also — these takes are somewhat ignorant and just very dumb in general. yes, you can erase the yi city arc from the story — but then you also erase not only the certain chain of events that happen but also a lot of symbolism and narration

and saying that erasing lwj and the romance "subplot" (especially when it's the plot of the story) changes nothing is so untrue but still annoys me so much. lwj is present in each and every arc and he isn't just a passive observer in the flashbacks despite whatever ppl like to believe — he saves wwx and ss from the waterborn abyss, he kills the tortoise of slaughter together with wwx, he helps wwx bring wn to consciousness. who would have done it if not lwj?

ppl like this also love saying "wangxian are already canon, you wangxian shippers have already won, what more do you want". maybe if ppl stopped mischaracterizing other characters to say how their (also mischaracterized) faves are actually the main characters of the novel and pretending like they engage in serious literary analysis, I wouldn't have to block so many ppl lol

People love to say that a Lan Wangji “doesn’t actually matter” to downplay his role in the story, when the story would literally be “everyone dies because there’s no one interesting enough to keep Wei Wuxian in the cultivation world to save them.” But yeah, the real problem is that Lan Wangji is not their cup of tea as a character, but they refuse to give up the clout of saying they’re a “fan” of mdzs.

mxtxfanatic

I think I kinda understand why so many Western mdzs fans loved to claim Wei Ying to be either "morally grey" or be "stupid or not political savvy". When Western media attempt to portray a character who is too "compassionate/kind to a flaw", they make them stupid, incompetent and impractical as fuck and then create a narrative that framed "compassion/kindness" as the cause leading the character to do stupid and unpragmatic shits that they ended being the main cause of all the misery and terrible outcomes. Then, we have this big boogaloo where this so-called kind and compassionate character does the "all creatures deserve my compassion and kindness regardless of any circumstances", which usually resulted in that character decided to be merciful and show kindness to even genocidal freak head, but then barely does shit to prevent this same cunt from wrecking more havoc and harm more innocents... Like see, see, seen that's "kindness to a flaw" and it's just character being short-sighted and again stupid.

So now, when we have characters like Wei Ying who are both kind and smart and attempted to go far beyond to protect innocent folks, for Western fans, these types of compassionate characters are unreal and illogical to them because how can a kind and compassionate character also be smart and pragmatic. Like to them, either the character has to be morally grey because of questionable actions/choices (but usually they thought a character doing some unorthodox methods and then boom, problematic and no longer the pure paragon), or they are stupid and clueless by choice of what happened surrounding them, as "being too compassionate and kind" to others supposed to make them blind to the bad actors, which ironically shift fhe blames away from those bad actors to the victims.... And now, topping with bad things still happening anyway to them anyway despite the attempts of trying to do everything right versus, we see more takes of what Wei Wuxian should have done this and that to avoid his fate in his first life, as if mdzs fans couldn't accept how doing everything righteous with compassionate can still result in unhappy endings.

Well, there’s a nice reason and a true reason to why this is a Western fandoms problem.

radish-appreciation

So obviously I spend a lot of time thinking about lan wangji hearing wangxian and knowing that wei wuxian is back.

BUT! imagine how he must have felt when jiang cheng hit wei wuxian with zidian. imagine! you've spent 13 years mourning the love of your life. raising his son as your own. scars on your chest and back that will forever remind you of what you've lost. and then he comes back. it's an unfamiliar body but you know that it's him. you can keep him safe this time.

and then his asshole brother who you HATE hits your love with the exorcism whip and for a second, you think you've lost him again. your second chance, vanished as soon as you found it.

and then he's fine! your lost love is still there, being his annoying self, flirting with you. probably just to piss his brother off but he says you're his type. this all happens within like five minutes. emotional rollercoaster of all time.

wherever-the-chaos-is

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wherever-the-chaos-is

Lan Wangji’s communication skills and other misunderstandings

I think Lan Wangji is good at talking and can express himself well. But he restrains himself from speaking his mind and his heart for various reasons or would prefer to express his intentions through action. Just because he’s quiet and introverted, doesn’t mean he’s bad at communicating.

I know there’s already a post explaining how Lan Wangji’s speech works in Chinese in terms of syntax and pragmatics, and I think that this can be translated well in English (or in other languages). To be able to pack as much meaning in as few words as possible and to be able to adjust your speech according to the receiver are such huge signs of intelligence, wit, and skill in any language, which is something Lan Wangji is able to accomplish.

Some of my favorite descriptions related to Lan Wangji’s way of expressing himself are the following:

Chapter 73:

“Lan WangJi rarely spoke when he was outside. Even when they debated cultivation techniques during Discussion Conferences, he only answered when others questioned or challenged him. With utmost concision, he overcame, without fault, the lengthy arguments of others. Apart from this, he almost never spoke up.”

Chapter 120:

“It definitely wasn’t out of cutting corners that Lan WangJi’s comments were short. He wouldn’t slack off in the slightest way, no matter how simple the task was. Rather, it was his habit to be as concise as possible, no matter in words or writing."

Chapter 94:

"Looking at him, Wei WuXian felt a place in his heart go soft. He also thought it was funny. This one’d been like this ever since he was young. When he wanted something, he never said anything on the surface, but rather chased after it as much as he could in his actions.”

Chapter 64:

Wei WuXian, “If he doesn’t wish to talk about something then I won’t ask.”

Lan XiChen, “But, with WangJi’s personality, how could he say anything if you do not ask? There are some things that even if you ask him he would not say.”

Chapter 126:

Wei WuXian, “That’s more like it. Just say it if you want some. You’ve really been like this ever since you were young, holding everything in and never saying what you want.”

In chapters 54 and 55, Lan Wangji talks so much after having been pushed to his physical and mental limits, answering Wei Wuxian’s remarks in anger and frustration. Lan Wangji also talks at length when he tells a story or relays information like when he tells the public version of Xiao Xingchen, Song Lan, and Xue Yang’s story in Chapter 29 and when he tells Wei Wuxian all about the Xuanwu of Slaughter also in chapters 54 and 55 (Seriously, go read those chapters. I can’t even quote it because Lan Wangji talks a lot and they have probably their longest conversations in the book in those chapters.)

Lan Wangji is also perceptive enough to know when he will not be understood the way he intends and can adjust himself well.

Chapter 74:

Lan WangJi, “Speech is forbidden when dining.”

For Wen Yuan to understand, he repeated it again using simpler language, “Do not talk when you are eating.”

Wen Yuan quickly nodded and buried himself in the soup, not saying anything anymore.

When he is nervous, he can get a bit tongue-tied like the average person:

Chapter 111:

Lan WangJi stared straight at him. Something strange glowed in his eyes. He started, “Then…”

Wei WuXian, “Then what? Stopping in the middle of the sentence isn’t your style, Lan Zhan.”

To offer some comparison, Wei Wuxian who is even wittier, more verbose and just generally more talkative, also gets tongue-tied when nervous:

Chapter 95:

The surging heat finally began to retreat. Wei WuXian’s head was still dizzy as he rambled on, “In these two lives, you’ve helped me a lot. I know you’re… really nice to me. You’re really great! Apart from thank you, I don’t know what else to say to you… Anyways, towards you, I feel… I feel…”

But this wasn’t the point at all. Wei WuXian had never confessed like this to anyone before. Even someone whose face was as thick as his felt a bit embarrassed. He could only first pick a few random things to say. Just as he was thinking how to explain himself to make it sound sincere and serious when Lan WangJi suddenly pushed him away.

But once he is comfortable with someone or when his reasons for restraining himself are gone, he will speak his mind and heart. We can see this when he freely talks to Lan Xichen about the things Wei Wuxian has shared with him in Chapter 125. He can also be witty and a bit sassy, especially in the present time, as we can see everytime he throws Wei Wuxian’s words back at him or even makes subtle digs at Wei Wuxian:

Chapter 21:

After a few moments, the strings played two notes on their own. Wei WuXian quickly asked, “What did it say?”

Lan WangJi, “I do not know.”

Wei WuXian, “What?”

Lan WangJi replied in an unhurried manner, “It said, ‘I do not know’.”

“…” Wei WuXian looked at him, suddenly remembering a conversation about “whatever” a few years ago. Touching his nose, he was at a loss for words, and thought, Lan Zhan is so bright. He even learned how to make me speechless.

Chapter 25:

Suddenly, one of Lan WangJi’s arms wrapped around his back and, as Lan WangJi bent down slightly, another went toward the back of his knees.

[…] Carrying him, Lan WangJi both walked and replied to him steadily, “You said that you didn’t want to be carried on my back.”

Wei WuXian, “I didn’t say that I wanted to be carried like this either.”

Chapter 45:

Wei WuXian was also shocked. He turned to Lan WangJi, “Your sect makes disciples do handstands while copying? That’s awful.”

Lan WangJi replied calmly, “There would always be someone who did not learn their lessons by simply copying the sect rules. Handstands not only guaranteed better performance in the future but also benefited cultivation.”

Of course, Wei WuXian was the someone who never learnt his lessons. He pretended as though he didn’t know what Lan WangJi was talking about. (Chapter 45)

. He can even be smooth as shown in Chapter 126:

“Be honest about whether or not you thought about me in the same way.” In a solemn tone, he spoke, “Rejecting me like that so coldly every single time—it really made me lose face, don’t you know?”

Lan WangJi, “You can try, now, to see if I would reject you over anything.”

The sentence so suddenly struck his heart. Wei WuXian choked, yet Lan WangJi was still as calm as ever, as though he didn’t at all realize what he just said. Wei WuXian put his hand to his forehead, “You… HanGuang-Jun, let’s make a deal. Please warn me before you say something so romantic, or else I won’t be able to take it.”

Regarding his feelings for Wei Wuxian, apart from that moment in the cave after the Nightless City massacre, I don’t think he ever intended for Wei Wuxian to know his feelings since Wei Wuxian already told him he was straight (Chapter 54: “Don’t worry—I don’t like men, I won’t take advantage of the opportunity and do anything to you.”) and then kept giving him mixed signals wherein Wei Wuxian would flirt with him but then pass it off as a joke. Unfortunately, Wei Wuxian did not remember that one time Lan Wangji wanted Wei Wuxian know how he felt, which causes much of their misunderstanding in the present.

I would also like to point out that Wangxian didn’t really have a miscommunication during that time as Wei Wuxian would acknowledge Lan Wangji’s concern and basically go "Thanks, but no thanks. You’re wrong and I have everything under control.” In fact, they actually reach an understanding in this conversation in Chapter 75:

A moment later, Wei WuXian spoke up, “Lan Zhan, you asked me if I intended on staying like this from now on. To be honest, I’d like to ask something as well. What can I do apart from this?”

He continued, “Give up the demonic path? Then what about the people on this mountain?

“Give them up? I won’t be able to do it. I believe that if you were I, you wouldn’t be able to do it either.”

He continued, “Nobody can give me a nice, broad road to walk on. A road where I could protect those I want to protect without having to cultivate the ghostly path.”

Lan WangJi gazed at him. He didn’t reply, but both of them knew the answer in their hearts.

There was no such road.

Look how smooth he is after he and Wei Wuxian got married. He finally knows and feels that he can freely express his love to Wei Wuxian in words, and he does just that in his elegant manner of speech

We can see here that Wei Wuxian has made his decision and all Lan Wangji could do is to respect it as a mere outsider in Wei Wuxian’s life.

In the present time, they have a misunderstanding but it is not borne from the lack of ability to express themselves. Rather, it is due to Wei Wuxian’s impaired memory. Add to that the fact that Wei Wuxian has already made assumptions about Lan Wangji that are actually not completely true as we are shown throughout the novel. At this point also, Lan Wangji has already been rejected and pushed away many times and is under the impression that Wei Wuxian already knows his true feelings.

In conclusion, Lan Wangji can express himself well. It’s just that he’s quiet and prefers action over words. Communication or expressing one’s self is more than just the skill of being able to put your thoughts and feelings into words. There’s plenty of other reasons why someone might not be saying something. Conflicts in the novel are much more complex and aren’t just because of mere miscommunication or inability to talk and express themselves properly. Not all problems are resolved in a way that both parties unite and end up on the same side. Differences in judgments and views happen and the only resolution is just to agree to disagree.

shanathegeekyartist

I posted this everywhere else on wwx his birthday except for here so well. Happy wangxian everyone

mxtxfanatic

I just read the new SVSSS extras and I can't tell you how happy I am that pretty much everything I headcanoned and theorized and assumed true ended up being true. I just can't believe it MXTX does it again and again, with the revised TGFC also bringing everything I read into as subtext right out on to the page. Incredible!

I seriously love all the improvements and extra details that work so beautifully with the original story (and also feeling extra vindicated when fandom theories I dislike get disproven). My goat remains on top

I was just saying how I’m very glad that mxtx is obviously uninfluenced by peer pressure, because the bullshit that the fandoms around her own works churn out would destroy a weaker author. Can’t wait to get my hands on my own copy and start writing.

phoenixkaptain

So tired of people talking about age difference in mxtx novels. If you are only looking at the bodies, then Wei Ying is like ten years younger than Lan Zhan, Hua Cheng is definitely ten plus years younger than Xie Lian, Bingqiu has a ten year age gap.

But you can’t just look at the bodies.

Wei Ying is the same age as Lan Zhan, he was dead for thirteen years and is in a body younger than himself. The age gap is practically non existent

Hua Cheng and Xie Lian are eight hundred years old each. After eight hundred years, the age gap isn’t really that bad.

Shen Yuan died when he was twenty. He met Luo Binghe when the boy was fourteen. Six years, okay. He only knows Binghe while he’s underage for three years, and during those three years Binghe is the only one with any romantic feelings. We hear all of Shen Yuan’s thoughts, there isn’t a songle moment that he thinks of Binghe as anything more than his disciple. Binghe comes back three years later, he’s twenty, Shen Yuan is around twenty-six. Shen Yuan fucking dies, again, like a dick. He’s dead for five years. When he comes back he’s thirty-one, Luo Binghe is twenty-five. This is the only time he sees Luo Binghe romantically. A twenty-five year old and a thirty-one year old dating is not very strange. They are both adults, they are both matured, they are both capable of making reasonable decisions, there is nothing bad about this age gap.

Please stop saying every age gap is awful, then praising HuaLian for being perfect when they have the biggest age gap of any mxtx couple.

slytherin1130

Are you normal or do you cry about how A-yuan was almost the same age when Wei Wuxian died as Wei Wuxian was when his own parents left him?

Both of them were taken in by major Sects because of who their parents were ( or guardian in the case of A-yuan), one loved because that was all that was left of their guardian but the other hated for the same reason.

One wasn't allowed to learn about their origins to keep them safe and protected in a world where every last member of their Clan was hunted down and killed. Still, the other was simply forbidden from learning anything about their parents because of a baseless rumor, jealousy, and insecurity.

One was truly accepted and the other was called a slave in their whole life.

Their backgrounds were so similar yet their childhoods were vastly different. They both went through so much.

The one with a good memory forgot the pain due to a fever.

The one with a horrible memory remembered every bit.

roguefandoms

Do you also cry about how the reason A-Yuan was able to grow up without being put down or denied information about his origins when he finally remembered is because the generation (Lan Wangji) that saw what happened to Wei Wuxian and how he was treated when everyone heard the jealous and petty rumors and saw him as the Jiang's servant was capable of acknowledging that that was wrong and doing better for the next child. Because children are inherently worthy of being loved and respected and deserve to know where they come if they want.

roguefandoms

No thoughts just Lan Wangji knowing exactly what it's like to lose someone he cares about and wishing he'd taken the chance to enjoy what little time they could have had together, which is why when he unexpectedly gets Wei Wuxian back he takes full advantage of the opportunity to express his care and mess with him the way he wished he had, and in return Wei Wuxian quickly sees just how correct he was about the scope of Lan Wangji's beauty, majesty, righteousness, and he learns just how easily they click into each other's lives and hearts.

tridentariussy

“All the MXTX tops want to be bottoms” “they’re all switches” y’all are wrong, and more importantly y’all are BORING

Lan Wangji is a stone top, Xie Lian and Shen Qingqiu are pillow princesses (Xie Lian in a body worship way, Shen Qingqiu in a starfishing way. I’m not elaborating), Wei Wuxian is submissive and breedable, Hua Cheng is a service top, and Luo Binghe has a power bottom in his heart yearning to break free. No I don’t take constructive criticism.

jiangwanyinscatmom

I can't believe the 25 adolescent minor thing is well and truly thrown around still and all the more hilarious when people try to call Lan Wangji a freak for being with Wei Wuxian who is in the body of a 26-27 year old man via a magical sacrificing ritual

roguefandoms

Lads is it problematic if I (spiritually 35, physically 26) date my boyfriend (physically and spiritually 35) despite being an adult minor?

jiangwanyinscatmom