I’m Going To Say Something A Bit Blasphemous in The MDZS Fandom

I’m going to say something a bit blasphemous in the MDZS fandom

Lan Wangji is just as culpable as Jiang Cheng in how things panned out in regards to the Wen Remnants and Wei Wuxian’s fate. The only real difference is how he actually acknowledges it while Jiang Cheng sinks into denial.

Hear me out. Lan Wangji is the only other person than Jiang Cheng who actually visits the Burial Mounds and sees for absolute certain that the people Wei Wuxian is looking after are just innocent civilians.

But nothing comes of that visit. Nothing at all. Like I mention in a previous post that he could have told Lan Xichen and that went nowhere because Jin Guangyao lies but actually…

It’s implied Lan Wangji shouldn’t have been in Yiling. That he sneaked away to be there. He didn’t tell anyone about his visit because he likely broke a few rules and was pretending otherwise.

The thing is, Lan Wangji absolutely does deserve in part the punishment that is those 13 years of quiet misery without Wei Wuxian. Because he’s in part responsible for that even happening.

There is a theme in the third flashback you have to search for. And that is that no one actually does anything except Wei Wuxian. Wei Wuxian is basically the only active person in that part of the story outside of the corrupt Jin Sect. In the face of everything, in the face of evil, people do nothing.

And by the end…people who do act do so too late to make a difference.

Jin Zixuan arrives too late in Qiongi Path to actually calm down the situation.

Wen Qing hands herself in alongside Wen Ning but it is too late as Jin Sect already decided to take everything from Wei Wuxian and just wanted a means to a) give justification so that Lan Sect would help with the attack on Wei Wuxian and b) hide the fact they don’t destroy Wen Ning and instead take him in to study.

Jiang Yanli comes to Nightless City to try to stop the violence but it’s too late because everyone has already pledged to attack and kill Wei Wuxian and the Wen Remnants.

Lan Wangji rescues Wei Wuxian in the aftermath of Nightless City but it is too late as he has been broken beyond salvation by the events of the past few weeks.

The only hope that is seeded is that Lan Wangji’s last minute action allows Wei Wuxian to survive and recover enough so he can destroy half the Yin Tiger Seal before his death. Considering Wei Wuxian remained out of it two days after Nightless City, he would have died otherwise and Jin Guangshan would have gotten his hands on the complete Yin Tiger Seal.

Instead he needed it fixed, which lead to a series of events that ultimately led to Wei Wuxian coming back…

But even so, in the past Lan Wangji did nothing. And he knows that. He did absolutely nothing to help Wei Wuxian before and that, more than anything, is why he refuses to be separated from Wei Wuxian and follows his lead 100% throughout the novel.

does jiang cheng have a choice?

antis hate Jiang Cheng for ‘abandoning’ Wei Wuxian, but did he realistically have any other options available?

for my money, the non-negotiable goals for Jiang Cheng in this situation are

keep Wei Wuxian alive and not in the custody of another clan

ease the pressure from the other clans to take responsibility for/act against Wei Wuxian

maintain the Jiang clan’s autonomy and standing amongst the clans

and the non-negotiable goals for Wei Wuxian in this situation are

keep Jiang Cheng and the Jiang clan safe, alive, and out of the direct control of other clans (especially the Jin)

undermine Jiang Cheng’s authority as clan leader as little as possible

keep the Wen safe, alive, and free (ish– at least as free as they are now)

continue trying to save Wen Ning/keep him ‘alive’ once he’s revived

do not reveal to anyone that he has lost his golden core

do not give anyone the Yin Tiger Tally

Wei Wuxian returning to the Jiang is off the table because he won’t leave the Wen. Wei Wuxian AND the Wen somehow coming into the custody of the Jiang isn’t possible because Jiang Cheng doesn’t have that much clout, and it’s hard to believe that Wei Wuxian would accept a situation that would necessarily have to look a lot like imprisonment for the Wen if the other clans were going to accept it. so already, the only way for Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian to both achieve some of their key goals is for Wei Wuxian to stay in the Burial Mounds with the Wen somehow– which means the only goals remaining to both of them are ensuring that the Jiang clan doesn’t get punished for that, or placed in a situation where they’re forced to act violently against Wei Wuxian/the Burial Mounds/the Wen (and yes, obviously it comes to that eventually anyway, but a lot changes first). and canon is explicitly clear that the other clans are absolutely not about to let the Jiang off the hook for what Wei Wuxian is doing. they want and need him to turn on Wei Wuxian, and if he won’t, they don’t really care about dragging this decimated, teenager-led clan down with Wei Wuxian.

the Jiang clan has nothing at this point, barely even a home. even if the other clans were open to reaching a compromise in terms of the Wei Wuxian situation, who on earth is going to believe him if he says, I’ve got the Wei Wuxian situation handled, I’m going to leave him in the Burial Mounds and keep an eye on him, he’s my problem not yours?

and that’s the final, essential element– Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian are not in a fair fight. the other clans are actively pushing them towards conflict, and won’t accept any outcome besides a complete break, or a complete capitulation by Wei Wuxian.

maybe I’m just not feeling creative today, but I genuinely can’t come up with a single other solution beyond the one that the two of them find and implement in canon– a fake schism and staged fight.

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purplepapriika

11 months ago