#riptidethepen

[overlysarcasticpolls]

We all know Cleo is gonna win this entire thing. She has to. She's a cat

I may have been wrong about most things...

[baoshan-sanren]

"Next to the Jiang Sect, the shield that protects the Emperor, the Nie Sect is the first line of offense, the living sword in the Emperor’s hand." This might be my favorite line in the fic. It's just so poetic

oh god can you tell that I really like the Nie Sect 

[imaginaryelle]

Ok. Sect vs Clan. What's the difference? Why do I feel like people are using them interchangeably and is that correct?

Probably you feel like people are using them interchangeably because sometimes they are doing so. I know that I have been sloppy about it at times (trying to do better on that), and sometimes the use of either word in the translation of the source material can be confusing.

I am not an expert on this, especially since I can’t read much Chinese, so I’m going to tag some people for confirmation ( @tonyglowheart, @bizarro-sai, your thoughts?) but:

My understanding is that the Clan is the central bloodline/blood family of a given Sect, and the Sect is a sort of cross between a militia and a quasi-religious group that trains disciples in various techniques and philosophies. Thus we get the Nie Sect’s use of saber technique vs the Lan Sect’s use of music, and both Sects have ancestral, blood-family-linked secrets and philosophical ideals tied into those techniques. The title of Sect Leader is generally carried by someone of both the Clan and the Sect (thus why, despite being the top disciple of the Jiang Sect, Wei Wuxian is never considered a potential future leader of it; he’s not part of the Clan bloodline).

Within the context of characters we talk about, everyone has both a bloodline and a sect, and they’re sometimes the same big group. Everyone with a Lan surname is understood to be both part of the general Lan Sect (which trains people in a set of principles and cultivation techniques) and part of the Lan Clan bloodline (so they have the fancy forehead ribbons instead of the plain ones). This is one reason why it’s such a big deal that Sizhui carries the Lan surname: he’s not actually of the bloodline, but that lie was used as another layer of camouflage to keep him safe. It’s also part of Lan Xichen and Lan Wangji’s discomfort with Su She. He was part of the Lan Sect, because they were training him in their specific cultivation path, but then he took that training and set up a rival Sect that very obviously uses that training. The Lans, at least, address this as “inner” disciples (clan) and “outer” disciples (sect only). All disciples are part of the overarching Sect. Wei Wuxian’s particular situation is complicated because he would be part of the Jiang Sect, but Jiang Cheng and Jiang Yanli treat him as family even though he’s not blood-related. He considers them siblings, but also has a connection to either the Clan or Sect (not sure which? it’s a bit of a special case) of Baoshan Sanren through his mother (thus the “we’re the same age but you’re my uncle” conversation with Xiao Xingchen in the drama).

As another example, Meng Yao has been part of multiple Sects (Nie, Wen, Jin), but it is only when he’s officially acknowledged and renamed by Jin Guangshan that he becomes part of a Clan. Mianmian leaves the Jin Sect and that choice is treated as not very important by Jin Guangshan partially because she’s a Sect disciple, but not part of the Clan, and probably also partially because she’s a woman and disagreeing with him. (Jin Guangshan is distinctly unconcerned about his bloodline, given all the bastard children he doesn’t acknowledge, but politically it would be more significant if someone carrying the Jin surname left).  Additionally, I’m pretty sure marriage politics are also at play: Jiang Yanli does not (quite) become Jin Yanli when she marries; she’s still part of the Jiang Clan and the marriage is an alliance of bloodlines as well as Sects (I’m basing this on the conversation she, Wei Wuxian, and Jiang Cheng have in Yiling before her wedding, but I could be missing something). She has joined the Jin Sect as well as her husband’s family, and her child is part of that Clan.

TL;DR, an individual can potentially join or leave or establish a Sect, but Clan is genetic. There are probably ways for people to be expelled from a Clan, but the novel doesn’t really explore that.

Hope this helps! If anyone has more nuance to add to this, or if I completely messed something up, please let me know.

[thealexalcala]

So, um...*awkward pause*...who's gonna tell Jae👀

This boy 🤦‍♀️. He must have really been over it to just call them out like that...

Hmmmm maybe Jinyoung.... maybe Brian.... maybe everyone?

It’s a mess waiting to happen.👀

[sugarchains]

Did you know Illinois is flipping huge? We've been driving for 4+ hours and we're still not out of Illinois.

!!!! i didnt know yall were that big! 

but no! i’ve only driven along the coast, so i only know that like florida is HUGE and delaware and maryland are like blinks 

[cupidhaos]

Unrelated question, who is Hao dressed as?

for reference on his costume:

im using their costumes from 2018!!

[iwillbeinmynest]

☕ + me being terrible at keeping in touch

Honestly, I'm the same so, no judgment from me! I'm the kind of friend who won't talk to you for weeks and think nothing of it. I'm not avoiding you I'm just bad at initiating conversation...

I'm also the friend who doesn't care if you don't talk to me for weeks. Whenever I hear from you I'll still be in the mind set that we talk everyday.

[legionofkoda]

Pass the happy! 🌻🌈 When you receive this, list 5 things that make you happy and then send this to 10 of the latest people in your notifications!

1. Cats

2. my past wips with @kxmwoojxn

3. @kxmwoojxn

4. @midnightmusic96

5. Woojin posting pics on Instagram