Headcanon That For A While Nico Doesn’t Have A Mortal Job He Just Does Underworldy Tasks As The Ambassador

A thought I had, (this isn't a fully thought out meta, just an impression of sorts.)

Something about Wei Wuxian's inherited vengeance.

Where did Wei Wuxian get that vengeance from? Mild-mannered Jiang Fengmian? Benevolent and kind Jiang Yanli? Cangse Sanren, who Wei Wuxian remembers saying something along the lines of remember the good things people do for you not the bad? Wei Changze?

The child of Cangse Sanren and Wei Changze would've likely done something along the lines of protecting the common people and fighting for justice during the Sunshot campaign, but did Wei Wuxian do that?

No, I tell you truly, Wei Wuxian is also the child of Yu Ziyuan. Did they have anything resembling a healthy relationship? No. But the child of Cangse Sanren and Wei Changze wouldn't slaughter thousands in unholy vengeance. Wouldn't extract oceans of blood for every drop stolen.

But the child of Yu Ziyuan would.

That isn't to say, he's only the child of Yu Ziyuan, no, we see glimpses of the influences of his other parental figures throughout the story.

Look at how he doesn't flinch from leaving the proverbial (paradise) mountain to save the wen remnants (CSSR), look at his compassion for the common people (Jiang Yanli); His sense of loyalty (Wei Changze), level headedness (Jiang Fengmian).

Something about how conscious he is of debt. Does that stem from his inherent preference of righteous action? His desire to do right? Yes. But I wouldn't discount his awareness of debt also coming from a quasi-maternal figure like Yu Ziyuan. Now there is a woman aware of debt, what she owes and what is owed to her.

Everyone is shaped by the adult figures in their life, and we inherit many things from them, such as traumas, perspectives and traits.

I posit Wei Wuxian is no different. But, just like Wei Wuxian, we aren't defined by our parental figures.

bonus:

(i like to think nie husiang’s entire existence is just a stream of continuous  flustered internal screaming upon being Chosen™ by this really weird grumpy dog with abandonment issues,)

xie lian: mu qing, are you still undressed? you've been in your room for hours now.

mu qing: *breathless* I just... I just can't find any nice clothing... to wear.

xie lian: what do you mean? your closet has a lot of nice things.

*xie lian opens up the door to the closet*

xie lian: see? shirts, pants, hi fengxin, shoes...

Sangcheng week Day 1 - Occasions

🪷 While a cultivation conference was being held in Yunmeng Jiang, the Jiang-zongzhu and Nie-zongzhu rested together. In the morning, Jiang-zhonghzu would cut off the sleeve of his robes, so as not to rouse his resting lover, not knowing that said man would flaunt the piece later for all to see. 🪷

lol this was supposed to a proper two-parter to tie in the point together more clearly and all but...... i just didn't feel like finishing this part ngl so all you get is a sketch hjdsh

also dont think too hard about why would JC go to the conference in the ruined robes or why didn't he take them off in the first place when going to sleep or how did NHS manage to get it together so quickly just. don't worry about that ok. plot convenience jfhkd

close-ups of the girlies. yes lines only cuz im lines lover and colours hater (more like failure lol dfhkjh)

OH YEA BTW for those who dont know ye this is obvs a reference to the emperor Ai of Han and the whole cutsleeve thing lol

Day 11 "Sparring"

au where nhs doesn't have to girlboss and can just be malewife <3

Do NOT think about Zukka x Cardigan by Taylor Swift unless you want it to envelop your soul

~

But I knew you'd linger like a tattoo kiss

I knew you'd haunt all of my what-ifs

The smell of smoke would hang around this long

'Cause I knew everything when I was young

~

Them getting so close leading up to Sozin’s Comet and then growing apart again after because of their respective duties

Mutual long distance reminiscing and pining over what could have been if they had met as emissaries of their nations in a peaceful world.

Zuko helping with the reconstruction effort and finding boomerang, Sokka building a fire and only being able to remember the warmth and smell of Zukos bending

They were both so young, so young, too young for the world to have been placed on their shoulders. They knew it was their responsibility, even now, they uphold their duties with straight backs and faces. They know, they know, they know it could never work, I mean- they never even confessed to each other.

But not even the brutality of war can stop children from dreaming.

Why is Jin Ling the way that he is (85% Jiang Cheng by mass), despite having presumably been raised mostly in Lanling - you know, the sect he’s going to inherit? A series of headcanons by me:

For at least a year following his brother’s the Yiling Patriarch’s apparent death, Jiang Cheng had a vibe like he was one word, half a sideways glance, a single split hair from snapping and killing everyone in this room and then himself. This only intensified when he was holding his sister’s son. And he held his sister’s son whenever physically possible. So they, uh. They let him keep the baby. Jin Guangshan was furious when Sect Leader Jiang just kind of stormed into Carp Tower and took his grandson, and everyone let him, but he finally saw Jiang Cheng face to face and it was like…you know what you can keep him. It’s okay. It wasn’t even a politically manipulable rage, it was so ABUNDANTLY clear that anyone who tried would also die. So Jin Ling lived in Lotus Pier and was carried around by his uncle like 24/7.

When this was starting to abate, Jin Guangyao’s son, Jin Rusong, was born. Coincidentally and tragically, Jin Guangshan dies shortly thereafter. 

Not in words, no, goodness no. Not even in actions. Maybe in non-actions - in Jin Ling only being invited to spend about one week out of every four in Carp Tower, in Jiang Cheng making no real move to find a wife - Jiang Cheng and Jin Guangyao have an agreement for several years. If one day Jin Ling were to give up to his cousin his claim on LanlingJin, and inherit YunmengJiang instead…that’d be okay. 

Then Jin Rusong dies and Jin Guangyao is a practical man, and begrudgingly so is Jiang Cheng: Jin Ling really needs to be spending more like 3 weeks in Carp Tower to every 1 in Lotus Pier. He needs to be raised by his father’s family, of whom he will one day be the head.

But it’s TOO LATE! The boy has spent his impactful first like five years learning to be shouty and straightforward! And moreover, Jiang Cheng has, uh, opinions about things, so little Jin Ling’s gonna hear Jin Guangyao and Qin Su’s advice to, like, smile and make friends even when he doesn’t want to, and he’ll be like, “well that’s DUMB. I WON’T.” They’re probably genuinely trying to parent him and still! This is how it goes! 

Maybe it would’ve sunk in eventually, but he kept going back to Lotus Pier for a week out of every month for positive reinforcement - because you cannot actually tell me that even when Jin Ling was at his brattiest, the entirety of Jiang Sect didn’t pick up on their sect leader’s energy of “this child will be CHERISHED or YOU WILL ALL DIE.” Not, you know, explicitly cherished, but…it beats the annoying court politics and terrible cousins of Carp Tower hands down

(in fact, you KNOW Jin Guangyao could’ve somehow arranged for Jin Ling to have more friends at Carp Tower, and instead he actively chose to be sure he would be Jin Ling’s only real ally there, and tbh that’s why he needed to die.)

TLDR Jin Ling imprinted early on the angry grape and part of that imprinting meant he was resistant to all other options for how to be, and also it got continuously reinforced by the directions from which he did and did not receive love

Thank you for coming to my ted talk.

My best friend’s best friend

WWX:  …… Is. Is this what karma is?? I don’t want it take it back–

(i am of the firm belief that the chengsang dynamic becomes 1000% funnier if you add distressed brother wwx lmao)