the conversation jiang cheng and wei wuxian have before their arranged fight after wwx settles in the burial mounds is so intense but it’s also so enlightening about their mindsets because jc goes into with this idea that wwx’s current actions are reckless, ill-thought decisions that he can talk wwx out of whereas wwx is fully aware of the deep shit he is in and knows exactly what awaits him and yet he chooses to stand by his morals. it’s the way at the start of the conversation, wwx says:
“what other path can I take, aside from staying in a jail of my own making?”
and this says everything about his understanding of what he’s doing while supporting the wen remnants and what kind of consequences that will bring him. but jc goes on to basically list out everything wwx will face – how he’s being ostracized, how siding with the wens will lead to doom – and i know part of it might be expository information, an insight into the cultivation world’s slimy ways but it is also kind of funny how jc thinks he needs to let wwx know all of this, as if wwx made a hasty move and will back out once he knows he’s starting his own downfall. but wwx painfully, thoroughly knows and that is what makes his stance with the wens all the more powerful, all the more selfless, all the more commendable. the very points that stop jc from supporting the wens make wwx more determined to help them. when jc fears ridicule, wwx fears for the lives of the wen–their fallout was inevitable, even without all the other conflicts they were embroiled in. they’re such different people, fundamentally, at their cores (the pun is very ironic ik 😭). while jc questions the lack of precedent, worries over straying from the conformist path, wwx readily accepts the unpaved road and walks it, not out of some misguided hero complex as jc suggests but because that is the right thing to do even if everyone’s deadset on proving him otherwise.
There is no stopping a star from burning itself out of the night sky
Words taken from - you can love him, but you can’t keep him (Sylvie j.p.)
The Shen Yuan who took his little sister to and from belly dancing classes, and practiced with her just to supervise her (he, having fun with that? ... he will never admit it out loud) and who happens to hum some of those melodies, now transmigrated into the Shen Qingqiu who for some mission must take a temporary female form and introduce as a dancer at a event to catch the attention of a weird and bloodthirsty demon (with the obvious company and embarrassing supervision of his shidi Liu Qingge and some of his trustworthy disciples).
Yes, Shen Qingqiu is against that at first… But the other option was to use Ning Yingying! He will absolutely not put that little girl in potential danger! And of course Qi Qingqi would never wear one of those embarrassing outfits, and Qi Qingqi's choice of disciples was still to send young girls to potential risk.
Okay, at least Shen Qingqiu knows how to dance.
(And he dances very well, to the absolute internal chaos of the white lotus Luo Binghe, and the near qi deviation of Liu Qingge. Where the hell did Shen Qingqiu learn to dance like that!? That's what he did in brothels, dance classes!?)
Lan Wangji: Why can't I have a morally questionable boyfriend when you do?
Lan Xichen: A-Yao isn't morally questionable!!
Lan Wangji: He's literally dragging his sworn brother's corpse right now
Lan Xichen, noticing Jin Guangyao: A-Yao, did you kill da-ge?
Jin Guangyao, dragging Nie Mingjue's corpse: Of course not er-ge, he's just sleeping
Lan Xichen: See Wangji, he's just sleeping
Lan Wangji: ( ,,⩌'︿'⩌,,)
lan xichen painted ayao four landscapes?? which ayao displayed proudly in the study off the reception hall?
a peaceful day
Xianle Quartet is a top tier polyship not only because of the metric ton of emotional baggage (and the sheer volume of sexual tension and awakening possible between 3 virgins and an effectively celibate fertility god), but also simply because they're all from a country renowned for beauty and pretentiousness, therefore treating impossible beauty standards as the norm.
Xie Lian's canon internal thoughts consist of not infrequently calling people ugly. Can we blame him? He was raised constantly surrounded by and continues to surround himself with devastatingly attractive people. Feng Xin, canonically olive-skinned and handsome, archer's figure. Mu Qing, canonically delicate-appearing and pretty. Hua Cheng, growing up to be tall and savagely beautiful.
Meanwhile, Hua Cheng is a literal fashionista, decked out in every possible silver accessory at any given moment, jingling like a Christmas elf and fabulous while doing it. He throws money around on luxury items just because he can, and his taste is impeccable. Mu Qing straight up destroys his own statues if they're ugly, literally described as wearing luxurious robes that he probably made himself because no one could do it better. They're the divas of this operation. They're judging you, hard, and they want you to know it, so you will.
Xie Lian is the equivalent of the naturally beautiful friend who doesn't wash their face with anything but a bar of soap and comes out looking flawless. He needs absolutely zero fashion sense because he could wear a trash bag and people would think it looks high fashion. Feng Xin is the himbo friend who washes with 10-in-1, yet his skin glistens in the sun like an oiled up ancient greek olympian. He does a normal amount of working out and comes out shaped like Captain America. They're simply God's Favorite, so they don't need to try.
Basically, I picture them as the blindingly hot polycule walking around like the Cullens entering their high-school cafeteria. Hair blowing in an invisible wind. Throwing incredible amounts of shade in the communication array.
They're hot. They're judgmental. They're literally the Mean Girls.
One of my most pointless but beloved MDZS headcanons is that Lan Wangji was a fat baby. Just a little butterball until he was about 5 years old. Just the squishiest little cheeks you ever saw.
My other beloved fanon/head canon is that Lan Wangji was a biter as a small child. So that cute, wobbly-cheeked face was extremely disarming and numerous Lans have little scars from where the toddling Second Young Master Lan bit the absolute fuck outta them.
This is so sweet and mischievous. Like yes, canon wangxian totally would
wwx: oh, i'm just a frail maiden kidnapped by-
kidnapper: you're a man
yllz, very darkly, very powerful: say one more thing and i'm going to make you eat your own guts
kidnapper, scared: ...yes, sir
wwx: oh, i'm just a frail maiden kidnapped by evil men, how i wish i could be saved by a beautiful strong gentleman,!
wwx: *open one eye waiting*
lwj: *arriving in his full lan glory while his husband claps excitedly*