LINKDING

summary: He Xuan has little money, no stable job, an eating disorder, and a great deal of resentment at the way their life has fallen apart. Shi Qingxuan, whom they met on an online eating disorder community, is also going through a challenging time. Perhaps it is good, then, that they have each other to depend on. ➜ beefleaf modern au ➜ sqx and hx, their respective struggles with eating disorders, and the relationship they have with each other ➜ told in a really cool non-traditional way, largely through the digital records hx keeps -- texts with sqx, web searches, youtube history, to do lists, notes to self, etc ➜ I love how the form allows this really great window into hx's state of mind, with a sort of spareness that packs a big punch ➜ and the translation to the modern context of the beefleaf relationship pre-black-water-arc is so good! ➜ what a good. I'm so impressed! ➜ 7k words long

summary: Disgraced former child star and current struggling street musician Xie Lian sends off an audition tape to a new movie on a wild impulse, and then runs into an interesting man while he's performing. And again that evening, and again the next day. When he's asked to travel to Atlantic City for a table read for the movie, his new friend, Hua Cheng, offers to drive him, and he proceeds to run into a number of old acquaintances (many of whom he didn't realize still considered him a friend), learn a few heart-breaking secrets, and fall absolutely catastrophically in love with a man he's pretty sure is already taken. ➜ tgcf hualian modern au ➜ xie lian is a former child actor who gets by by busking, hua cheng is a mysterious handsome goth he keeps running into, and bai wuxian is the twitter troll who ruined xl's previous career ➜ I love watching hualian's interactions with each other, how much fun they have teasing each other and how much they like each other (and are weird about each other) ➜ lots of secondary characters they have connections to ➜ yin yu as hbomberguy equivalent...this gives me life ➜ charming and fun and exactly what I needed on the day I read it ➜ 19k words

summary: <blockquote>It was a gusty night in the hills as young lady Shi approached the scholar Ming’s estate. </blockquote> ➤ hello impeccable gothic vibes beefleaf ➤ also, doing great things with gender. also, contains MUFFING. (thank u Fucking Trans Women for teaching me about muffing) ➤ this is so beefleaf. I love them both so much <3 ➤ 2k words in length ➤ blood-drinking but not vampires

summary: <blockquote>“Tell you what,” said Yushi Huang. “I’ll make you a deal, Ling Wen Zhen Jun.” Almost no one used her title at all, even fewer with respect. She couldn’t quite read Yushi Huang’s tone. “If you can tell me exactly what this is,” she nodded to the creature curled in the corner, "and what it does, I will turn it in the moment we get back for tagging and proper categorization." Ling Wen raised an eyebrow. So the enigmatic Rain Master already knew the creature's properties. "And if I don't?" Yushi Huang smiled, infuriatingly gentle. "Admitting defeat so soon? How unlike you." Ling Wen drew herself up and inclined her head, knowing herself to be rising to bait but seeing no real reason to resist. "I accept your terms."</blockquote> ➤ tgcf space au featuring ling wen/yushi huang, HELLO ➤ yushi huang's deliberate mysteriousness, and the way she uses it to flirt and get the upper hand with ling wen! ➤ ling wen enjoying having something to research that's for FUN instead of for work! ➤ the interesting development of the setting, and ways the characters and backstories have been tweaked to fit! ➤ LOVED IT. ➤ 4k words in length

Summary: <blockquote>A facet of reality where Quan Yizhen has something Hua Cheng wants, for a change.</blockquote> ➤ tgcf canon divergence au where quan yizhen finds the coffin containing the guoshi fangxin ➤ a fun look at a different way for xie lian and hua cheng to meet again, and for quan yizhen and yin yu to meet again! ➤ 9k words in length

Summary: <blockquote>The most shocking thing about Ghost City was how modern it was. Billboards! Traffic lights! KFC! Xie Lian could never get over the demons taking pictures of street food. The first time she saw it happen, she pulled on Hua Cheng’s sleeve and whispered, “San Lang… why is that man photographing his dumplings?” Hua Cheng glanced at Xie Lian. “People post photos online. On Weibo, usually.” Xie Lian had the vague sense that Weibo was sort of like a public communication array. She wasn’t sure why anyone would share photos of their food there, but she didn’t know anyone who would be interested besides Hua Cheng. “Ah, I see.” “I’ll show you, jiejie.” Hua Cheng fished her phone out of her pocket. Her suit was so low-cut that Xie Lian could barely look at her; the fake fur trim ran down to the navel, exposing the soft curves of Hua Cheng’s breasts and the garish necklace suspended between them. “Here, look through this.”</blockquote> ➤ rule 63 modern au hualian ➤ it is so SOFT and suffused with care that I am all emotions!!!! ➤ also. the outfits. I die. ➤ 3k words in length

Summary: <blockquote>"Really, Xie Lian, you don't even jerk it??" Shi Qingxuan insists. "I mean it's none of my business and you can tell me to fuck off, but holy shit, lady." Xie Lian laughs, feeling her cheeks color, and shrugs again. "I don't know, something about the mechanics of it just never made sense to me," she admits. "And anyway that's time I should be spending studying." / It comes out that Xie Lian's never had an orgasm. She goes to Hua Cheng for help. • theyre lesbians</blockquote> ➤ modern au where hualian are lesbians ➤ xie lian has never had an orgasm, and hua cheng offers to help by loaning her a toy ➤ obviously the help ends up going further than that ➤ it's just so cute and sweet how much xl and hc love each other and take care of each other and are clearly SUPER into each other! ➤ and how good they are about each other's weird hangups about sex! ➤ 19k words in length

Summary: <blockquote>No matter how she tries to word it, the question is going to sound terribly awkward. Even if San Niang is the most trustworthy person Xie Lian knows, she might decide to simply hang up and go back to sleep. “I wondered… I mean, since then I have been wondering if maybe what Shi Qingxuan was suggesting might not be entirely out of the realm of possibility,” she rushes through this as quickly as possible, squeezing her eyes closed as she speaks. “I don’t really know how to judge what I’m, um, supposed to feel.” “About… women?” San Niang says, posing the question tentatively. “Yes,” Xie Lian says, breathing it out. “Oh,” San Niang says, just as softly. “Okay. Um.”</blockquote>

Summary: <blockquote>"Don't fuck your ex," Pei Ming said when Shi Qingxuan told him that she'd been cast in the Broadway debut of Heaven Official's Blessing.</blockquote>

Summary: <blockquote>If Lang Qianqiu thinks back, she can vaguely remember her instincts screeching at her to bolt. She isn’t here by accident. She has no idea if Qi Rong set out to woo her with her hair-filled shower drain and fridge full of condiments. That Lang Qianqiu was wooed is her own baggage to unpack.</blockquote> ➤ OKAY FINE I guess I just enjoyed a qi rong ship!!

Summary: <blockquote>After getting lost in Ghost City, Xie Lian bargains away years of servitude to the Gambler’s Den to help a man in need. He dons the robes of a worker and hides his face and life behind an enchanted mask, protecting himself from the city's denizens. Xie Lian finds an unexpected home in Ghost City before he ever sees the lord of it, the infamous Hua Cheng. When he finally does, something about himself seems to catch the attention of the Ghost King, slowly striking up an unusual friendship. Xie Lian must figure out how to navigate his burgeoning feelings, how to keep his identity to himself, and how to get over a ghost so clearly in love with someone else.</blockquote> ➤ I enjoyed the fic a lot but the ending wasn't very tight

Summary: <blockquote>Wearing a face that is not his own, dressed in a red tunic and simple boots, Hua Cheng comes face to face with the love of his life - and forever after - for the first time in two hundred years. Or, the one where Xie Lian is also a ghost.</blockquote>

<blockquote>The long-fallen god of strategists and scholars has but one devoted worshipper left. No one sees the Heavenly Martial Emperor Luo Binghe kneeling in front of a statue maintained only by his own careful hands, praying faithfully to his lost master: Shen Qingqiu, the god who took him under his wing when he ascended—and who was later struck down from Heaven by Luo Binghe himself.</blockquote> ➤ au with svsss characters in tgcf setting; sj & sy are twins ➤ love the au and some of the fun thematic things it was doing, but it felt like it all wrapped up a little too easily and quickly in the end

<blockquote>Almost 3k words of Hua Cheng being a disaster in love. :D / Around the campfire, Xie Lian tells stories that are meant to be scary, but Hua Cheng just stares at his face, lovestruck. His heart is pounding, but not from fear. He can’t believe Xie Lian is here. Warm, and safe, and holding him. "Oh, San Lang, was that one too much?" Xie Lian whispers to him, sounding concerned. He presses a hand to Hua Cheng’s chest, and Hua Cheng leans into it, delirious from how much he’s being allowed. "Your heartbeat’s like a little rabbit." "M-hm, I’m so scared," Hua Cheng agrees, not bothering to try to be convincing. "Won’t gege protect me?" Xie Lian smiles at him fondly. "Of course," he whispers back. He hugs Hua Cheng a little tighter. "I won’t let anything get you."</blockquote>

<blockquote>viral sculptor hua cheng who never shows his face only his hands & makes these gorgeous statues, beautifully detailed in everything except the face, which he either stops filming before he sculpts or carefully leaves out of frame</blockquote>

<blockquote>Outside, San Niang has long finished the quota of charity Xie Lian allotted her. She's drinking something from the bakery on the corner—probably one of their dreadful, bitter coffees. The wind is making a mess of her hair. Yearning plants a seed in Xie Lian's heart.</blockquote>

<blockquote>Every morning he wakes up, and forgets.</blockquote> ➤ this is soooooo good ➤ SPOILER: the premise of the fic is: "What would Xie Lian have done in the name of atoning for his regrets, and how might that have been taken advantage of."

<blockquote>Hua Cheng never particularly cared for the palace intrigues of Yong’an, not until its distinguished State Preceptor came to visit with an unexpected, delicate proposal. Or, an illustrious cultivator comes to Hua Cheng for an audience in the Gambler’s Den.</blockquote> ➤ alternate third meeting

<blockquote>“Do you—” Quan Yizhen started, and then on the other side of the room Pei Ming started up his jackhammer, so he waited, bouncing on the balls of his feet, and then said all in a rush, “doyouknowHuaCheng?” Xie Lian blinked. “You know—him?” she asked, in case 'San Lang' was some kind of private name, a secret code just for her. She liked the thought of that. Quan Yizhen shook his head vigorously, his curls bouncing. “No!” he said. “But Yin-ge said you were with him at Home Depot and you left together!” Xie Lian stared at him. One of the employees that had helped her a few weeks ago had been called Yin something, she was pretty sure, but that’s about as far as she could follow what was happening here. “Yizhen, if you don’t know Hua Cheng, why is this… notable?” “He’s famous. Or like. The bad one. Infamous. I thought—” His eyes gleamed. “I thought maybe you fought him.” / Retired (read: disgraced) famous boxer Xie Lian meets a helpful stranger while at Home Depot attempting to fix her collapsing roof.</blockquote> ➤ the mafia element is very minor

<blockquote>“She gave you weed?” She asks, and then, scowling, “you’re not suggesting we—” Feng Xin makes a face at her. “No, are you kidding? With my baby in the room? You really think a lot of my parenting skills, huh.” “Sorry,” Mu Qing mutters, because Feng Xin is a good dad, for the most part, once she stopped being stupid about leaving dangerous shit around her apartment. “I thought,” says Feng Xin slowly. “I thought you might want it?” “I don’t even drink,” Mu Qing says incredulously, “and you think I might want the shitty weed you got from the potential cannibal you went on a bad date with?” “Weed is different from booze,” Feng Xin argues. “Maybe it’ll help you, like. Relax, a little.” “Who the fuck says I need to relax,” Mu Qing snaps. “Fuck,” says Cuocuo, gummily but unmistakably. Mu Qing stares at Feng Xin, who stares right back. “Please tell me that wasn’t his first word.” </blockquote>

<blockquote>Xie Lian held up the flyer, and squinted at it through the eye-holes of his mask. Beneath the words ‘Join the Selection! Be the Ghost King’s Bride!’ the sweeping eaves rendered in wobbly black ink matched the silhouette of the building in the distance. Paradise Manor. The Ghost King’s home. - ...The Princess and the Pea retelling? Set before the events of the novel. The Ghost King of Paradise Manor is selecting a bride. Xie Lian doesn't really know what he's doing there.</blockquote>

<blockquote>“It is possible,” Hua Cheng began slowly, for once looking like a real person and not a god who had meticulously chosen a human suit in which to travel this petty and boring mortal world, “I may have lied a little, to my cohort. I may have told them, a few of them, not many, I was married.” “Okay,” Xie Lian said, assuming he was talking about his special someone. “To you.” “WHAT.” Or: After a meltdown goes viral and ruins his acting career, Xie Lian moves to LA. Unable to find work, he slips into a severe depression, until Shi Qingxuan hooks him up with a new roommate, an art student who has apparently been telling everyone they're married.</blockquote>