fics where lan qiren, lan xichen, one of the lans look at wwx in the study at cloud recesses arc and they’re like “…hey this ones smart lets keep him.” Or “this one makes lwj happy, lets keep him”
just… fics where he gets to study and be challenged in the cloud recesses study arc. I love those fics so much.
Granted, those fics do tend to be jiang clan bashing. I dont really go looking for that, but i wont avoid either if that makes sense? I don’t really have an opinion on it.
Hey! If you have a chance, could you point me I. The direction of fics where wwx just sort of casually hands out his inventions and talismans because he just doesn’t realize how valuable his own work can be and other people/sects are shocked by his brilliance and/or the fact he isn’t trying to make money off them or keep them as exclusive sect secrets?
hey Nonny not exactly what you were looking for but its a great read.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
Free Wifi for Heroes by JJSparrow
Wei Wuxian, Founder of Wifi Industries, is the most sought-after Hero Equipment Engineer on the market. From the Yunmeng Lightning Whips to the now commonly used Compass of Evil, his inventions have revolutionized the Hero landscape. It is thus no wonder that the Twin Jades have now secured an appointment.
(au:modern, explicit, 50k, complete, explicit sexual content, fluff and smut, inventor!wwx, engineer!wwx,ceo!lwj, hero!llwj)
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
or, one hundred and thirty-three principles of the Gusu Lan, pertaining to the state of marriage
***
He bows to Wei Wuxian, sword in hand, sleeves falling properly. Wei Wuxian bows in return, and the sect leaders begin the opening courtesies, and for all of ten minutes Lan Wangji is under the impression that he is betrothed to a boy who is perfectly normal and acceptable apart from an unfortunate tendency to fidget with his clothes.
That impression does not last.
(Canon divergence, AU: arrangedmarriage, thirst and pining)
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
Gentians in bloom by teawater
Lan Wanji was never told the details of his parents' story. Now that he has discovered his own desires, his life's goal is to keep Wei Wuxian from finding out. But life is cruel and truths get revealed at the worst possible times.
not rated | 3k | pre-wangxian, gen | appreciation & genius!wwx | oneshot
summary:
Wei Wuxian wakes up late, then goes about his day as Head Disciple of Yunmeng Jiang. But why is everyone behaving weirdly?
@pocketfulofrecs
full fic under read more:
Wei Wuxian woke up sore all over and very, very tired. Shouldn't sleep have rejuvenated him? He slept well past his usual waking time, too - it was almost time for lunch!
He watched the ceiling for a while, contemplating whether getting up would even be worth the trouble. Deciding he couldn't just abandon his duties as Head Disciple, he heaved a sigh and sat up with a groan. His body swaying slightly, he pushed the heels of his hands into his eyes to stop the dancing dark spots in his vision. When he was sure he wasn't in danger of just falling back on the bed, he pushed the thin blanket away and started getting ready for the day.
By the time he was done it really was time for lunch. Feeling guilty for abandoning everyone and making them take up his responsibilities, he slinked sheepishly into the dining hall. Jiang Yanli was already in her seat, but no one else was there yet.
"A-Xian! Good morning," greeted him Jiang Yanli with a bright smile. "Did you have a good rest?" she asked, a hint of a worry in her voice.
"Good morning, shijie!" replied Wei Wuxian with a radiant smile of his own. "Of course, how could I not, sleeping until the sun is in its highest position? It's shining so brightly, too, it's a wonder it didn't wake me up!"
"Oh? But I heard Xianxian was up late helping in the infirmary?" asked Jiang Yanli, putting various food on a plate. When it was filled so much it couldn't hold any more, she pushed it in front of Wei Wuxian. "Eat, you must replenish your energy!"
"Jiang-shushu is not here yet," protested Wei Wuxian. He didn't want to be the only one eating while she waited for her father.
"I'm here, so start eating, A-Xian," came a gentle voice behind them. "Good morning, children."
They replied to his greetings in a chorus and waited for the Jiang Sect Leader to sit down before starting to eat. For a while there was only the sound of chopsticks on ceramic and the various appreciative murmurs about the taste of the dishes. Finally, when their bellies were mostly satisfied, Jiang Fengmian put away his chopsticks and called out to Wei Wuxian.
"How are you today, A-Xian?"
He asked the question gently and with no reproach. Wei Wuxian, however, cringed away momentarily.
"Ah... I'm sorry for sleeping for so long, Jiang-shushu," he apologized. "I didn't mean to make trouble for everyone."
"Trouble?" asked Jiang Fengmian, surprised. "It was no trouble. Certainly, I expected you to take the whole day off. You've worked so hard late into the night, didn't Jiang Zhushi-daifu suggest you relax today? At least that's what she reported to me this morning," at the last part he raised an eyebrow, looking at Wei Wuxian pointedly.
Wei Wuxian laughed the pointed concern away. "I didn't do much, only some cleaning! The healers had their hands full with more tiring and important work than that, so I thought I could help."
"It was very commendable of you to do that, A-Xian," praised Jiang Fengmian. "You may not consider it as too important, but all doctors at the infirmary were very appreciative of your help. There were too many patients last night, and there was no one free to keep things clean while they were treating the wounded."
"Cleanliness is very important to not set back the recovery, or make things worse for the patients," interjected Jiang Yanli, shooting Wei Wuxian a proud smile. "So isn't it undeniably worthy of praise that A-Xian did essential work while he was tired and well after he should have gone to sleep?"
"No one else volunteered, either," agreed Jiang Fengmian before Wei Wuxian could refute his shijie's words.
"That's because there was a lot of blood and vomit! One patient had even peed when he was being moved to a bed..." Wei Wuxian mumbled as if he were defending himself against malicious words and not praise.
"It is understandable why other disciples did not want to help," concurred Jiang Fengmian, "but that only means that what you did was exceptional, A-Xian."
Wei Wuxian muttered his thanks for their kind words and quickly shoved more food into his mouth, sending a clear signal that he won't hear a word more on the matter. His companions chuckled lightly, shooting themselves amused looks, indulgent in the face of such cute petulance.
After lunch Wei Wuxian felt much more refreshed and energetic. He decided to ask his shidi what they have accomplished today on his behalf and continue his duties from there. It was a slow day, thankfully, and Jiang Wangshu was experienced enough to oversee the drill exercises for archery. For talisman writing practice he only had to hand out the talisman sheets that Wei Wuxian had prepared the day before and collect the filled papers afterwards, so there were no problems on that front either.
All that was left for Wei Wuxian was to collect his juniors for their daily sword and hand-to-hand practice. It was surprisingly difficult, as throughout the day one after another his shidi came up to him to offer him watermelon ("It's so hot today, dashixiong, don't you wanna refresh yourself? we got these specially for you!") or water ("Have you had enough to drink today, dashixiong? Jiang-shijie says it's important to keep hydrated!"), or collected his arrows after every shot during his individual archery practice ("You always help us so much, dashixiong, let us do this one thing for you!"), and as soon as they were done, they disappeared faster than they ever were during practice races.
It was all very suspicious. Finally, he managed to corral his juniors for training, and everything went smoother than usual; all shidi listening to his every word, no one instigating fights or tomfoolery, no whining or excuses. Wei Wuxian tested their resolve by not calling for respite after half a shichen as he usually would have, but no one complained or even muttered that surely it should be time for a break? Impressed despite himself, Wei Wuxian decided to have mercy on them.
"Stop! Everyone put their practice swords on the rack and sit down to cool off and even out your breath!" he called out, finishing the sequence they were practicing.
Every junior moved as one to put their swords away. Then Jiang Fei, the youngest of the group, came to Wei Wuxian with a towel and wiped down Wei Wuxian's neck.
"Let me help you get the sweat off, dashixiong, you may get a cold otherwise!"
"Wipe yourself!" exclaimed Wei Wuxian, pushing him lightly away. In the back he could see many other shidi holding towels, water, watermelon, lotus seeds... One was even holding a fan! "What is this all about? Speak quickly, and don't tell lies!" he warned.
His juniors looked between themselves uncertainly, finally appointing Jiang Fei to explain. The poor boy searched for the words but nothing seemed to come to his mind. The silence stretched between them as Wei Wuxian's eyebrow rose higher and higher.
"Dashixiong, tell us about the hunt from yesterday!" he burst out finally.
"Ah?" startled Wei Wuxian. "Is that all?"
Seeing all the impatient and excited eyes looking at him, he guessed that it really was.
"But dashixiong, that was an adult nighthunt! No supervision and all! With all the best Jiang cultivators! And you were the only junior disciple to be invited!"
"Well yes, but because I was the youngest I didn't have much to do, mostly I was there as back up," he explained, slightly amused so much fuss was made about such a small matter.
Jiang Wangshu looked at him skeptically. "Are you sure? Because that's not what we heard..."
"Yeah, yeah!" picked up a few other shidi. "A-Mei overheard Hua Lian-qianbei and Jiang Shu-qianbei talking about the hunt, and how you were amazing, and..."
"...And I heard them saying that you are a genius and your talismans are the future of cultivation!" interjected Liu Mei self-importantly.
"...Yeah, that, and also that they will definitely ask you for more information about them, and..."
"...And that they will definitely invite you again next time!"
The shidi kept shouting over each other. Wei Wuxian did not know whether they were really trying to inform him of what they heard or trying to one up each other on who got the juiciest information.
"If you know what happened so well, then why are you asking me?" he quipped, still slightly bewildered. "Perhaps it wasn't me at the hunt but all of you instead!"
The shidi protested loudly, bemoaning that they only heard the general report and begged him to tell them about the hunt in more detail.
"Alright, alright, settle down," he ordered. "Really, you are exaggerating what you heard, I'm sure—
"They really aren't," interrupted him from behind the cheerful voice of Hua Lian. "Although it is good to know that what I thought was a private conversation clearly wasn't."
The junior disciples quickly calmed down in the presence of their senior, bowing properly and shooting sheepish looks at having been caught eavesdropping.
"Hua-qianbei," greeted her Wei Wuxian, bowing respectfully but with a smile. "What brings you here?
"Oh, even after all you've heard from your shidi, can't you take a guess?" she teased him, hands on her hips, head tilted and a cheeky smile on her face.
"I cannot presume to know what such an esteemed senior may need of this Head Disciple," answered smoothly Wei Wuxian.
"Oh, stop it!" snorted Hua Lian. "Obviously, it's about the talisman you used yesterday! I would like to know more about it, it will be a very useful addition to our usual stack of nighthunting talismans."
"Ah, qianbei, it's still a prototype..."
"All the more reason to talk about it and help you figure out the snags!" she insisted.
"No, I... there are no previous versions, I made the stasis talisman on the spot," admitted Wei Wuxian reluctantly, not wanting to be scolded by a respected senior for using an untried invention without asking for permission.
However, no reproof came in his direction. Hua Lian's eyebrows rose, her expression clearly surprised. That surprise quickly changed into awe.
"We've all known for a long while now that you will be one of the best cultivators there are, but you are truly remarkable," she said amazed. Seeing as he wanted to protest this effusive praise, she continued without letting him speak. "No, listen, you have to realize - if not for your quick thinking and, apparently, impressively extensive theoretical knowledge of talismans and phenomenal ability to put it into practice, many of us would have died or become severely injured in that nighthunt. It is also only thanks to you that we were able to transport the wounded villagers to Lotus Pier for treatment in time, all without worsening their wounds. You are indispensable to this sect, Wei Wuxian, and it will be an honor to nighthunt with you again."
Wei Wuxian stifled the slightly self-depreciating words that were on the tip of his tongue. It wasn't that he thought his skills were subpar, or that he was undeserving of praise. On the contrary, he was well aware of his strengths and didn't care for insincere, overblown humility. He would be the first to admit that among his peers there was no one, bar perhaps Lan Wangji, who could truly match him in a real fight. Still, hearing such gushing admiration from an experienced senior was different. He was humbled but also embarrassed that such a seasoned senior held him in such high regard as to ask to partner up with him for future nighthunts, and that she asked him to teach her about something - even if indeed he was the inventor of what she wanted to learn.
Thus slightly troubled, Wei Wuxian could only bow to Hua Lian and accept her compliments. "Thank you for your kind words. I will make sure to be deserving of them."
"Oh, pshh! Just promise me to teach me all bout that talisman - what did you call it, stasis? Fascinating!"
Hua Lian looked around at the junior disciples surrounding them, all holding breaths and hanging onto every word. Their faces were awestruck but also agreeing - to them, singing praises upon their dashixiong was something to be expected. "Well, I will let you go back to your duties, I have taken up enough of your time. Catch me at dinner and let me know when you have time for that lesson!"
And with a last smile and wave, Hua Lian disappeared behind the corner.
All faces turned as one to look at Wei Wuxian.
"What are you waiting for?" he asked them, hands on hips to show feigned disapproval. "The break should have ended a while ago, and yet here you are, not practicing! And to top it off, eavesdropping!" he gasped in outrage.
"Sorry, dashixiong!"
"Won't happen again, dashixiong!"
The shidi dispersed as fast as the wind to pick their swords back up and returned to practice.
Wei Wuxian was walking back to his quarters, tired out through the day due to his short sleep, when he was stopped by a harried-looking servant and informed to head to the infirmary. Wondering what it was about, Wei Wuxian hastened his steps. He arrived quickly, but there was no sense of urgency or panicking in the room that would explain the seriousness with which the servant had called him here.
"Ah, there you are!" exclaimed Jiang Zhushi-daifu as she spotted him looking bemusedly around the room. "Good, good. We were just waiting for you."
"Is there something I could assist you with, Jiang-daifu?" asked Wei Wuxian, not really noticing anything that might require his help.
"No, nothing like that! You've been enough help yesterday, we couldn't ask of you more," refuted Jiang Zhushi. She led him to the side of the room where the occupied beds were. "Some people would just like to have a few words with you."
And with a secret smile, she left him with the wounded villagers from yesterday's nighthunt. They all looked to be asleep.
"Hello," greeted Wei Wuxian in a soft voice to not disturb those who were sleeping.
"Ah, young master!" he was answered by a croaky voice of the village's old blacksmith. "We have all been waiting to see you again, but I'm afraid I was the only one to stay awake," the old man laughed, each breath producing a wheezing sound.
"I'm sorry for coming so late," apologized Wei Wuxian, feeling bad that people thrice his age had to wait for him, not to mention that they all must have been exhausted due to their injuries.
"No apologies!" chided him gently the old blacksmith. "You have saved us, young man. There are no words strong enough to express our thanks, and no actions extraordinary enough to return your act of heroism. But I want you to know," he looked straight at Wei Wuxian with intense focus, "that we will all remember you till the end of our lives. And if you ever find yourself in need of support, we and our families for the next seven generations will offer that support to you and your relatives."
In the face of such serious and earnest gratitude, Wei Wuxian could only bow deeply and accept the precious gift he was given.
When Wei Wuxian finally arrived back in his rooms he was silent. He felt strangely vulnerable. He did not expect the last nighthunt to have such an impact on so many people. He did not consider his actions so exceptional as to warrant all the recognition and appreciation he received today. However, rejecting them would be disrespectful to the people who deemed him deserving of such. He will accept them, then, and strive to be worthy.
He fell on his bed, arms spread wide. His head landed on some strange texture that made a crinkling sound, so he quickly sat up and looked at where his pillow was supposed to be. On the pillow was a crumpled letter, rolled into a slim cylinder and bound with a light blue ribbon.
Suddenly feeling breathless and all previous fatigue gone, Wei Wuxian grabbed the letter and opened it with shaking but meticulous hands. He read the letter twice over, face growing redder with each word. On his third read-through, finally he couldn't take it anymore and closed his eyes, pressing the paper to his face and making unintelligible noises into it.
"Aah, Lan Zhan! How can I fall asleep now?" lamented Wei Wuxian loudly, clutching the letter to his chest tightly and thinking of the elegant Second Jade of Lan, who had rejected his overtures at friendship for so long, and had only started to warm up to him a few weeks before the end of the lectures at Cloud Recesses.
What a change their relationship had undergone since that time! Wei Wuxian could not believe the boldness with which Lan Wangji wrote to Wei Wuxian, but the intent could not be mistaken - every letter had been more and more obvious. Wei Wuxian couldn't wait until they met next time to find out for himself where this will lead. However it will turn out. he was hopeful and excited.
Wei Ying,
I am writing to express my thanks for sending me the prototype of the Compass of Evil. It has been extremely useful during my nighthunts. I have managed to finish all the hunts since I received your gift much quicker than before, which allowed me to take more hunts and help more people in the same amount of time. I am certain the Compass will revolutionize the cultivation world and nighthunting practice, should you decide to make it available to all cultivators. If you do, please remember to charge an appropriate fee for an invention of this caliber instead of undercharging, at least hen dealing with the wealthier sects. You deserve every coin, and they are well able to pay for it without facing any trouble.
I am afraid you will not believe me, but Uncle has deemed the Compass a good invention that will be useful for both cultivators and common people. When I informed him you were its creator, he only hummed a little and replied with "well, of course." When Xiongzhang noticed that he wasn't surprised, he admitted that you were the most brilliant student he had ever had, even if it was undermined by your mischief (!). While this may all sound outlandish, please remember that I am writing from my home, and lying is forbidden in Cloud Recesses.
I heard you have been very active and nighthunting often as well. Tales of your triumphs have spread to Gusu. I drink in every word that the travelers speak, for your accounts are never enough, and there can never be enough words when describing Wei Ying's accomplishments. Perhaps you would be amenable to join me on a rather peculiar nighthunt not far from Yunmeng. It has been a long time since we have last seen each other. Please let me know if you are interested and would like to know more details.
I wish you would let me repay you for the Compass. However, if you insist on being unreasonable and argue that it was a gift, then I can only hope you will change your mind next time, and I will try to believe my letter is sufficient thanks until then. If it wouldn't displease you, perhaps I could try to convince you to accept more appropriate thanks during our next meeting.
