Worldbuilding is my greatest passion

[extrapenguin]

I canon reviewed The Untamed for my Baoshan Sanren/Lan Yi, and look, if the Yin Iron was forged by Xue Chonghai 100 years ago, how come Lan Yi is discovering it as if it were an old and ancient and forgotten thing also 100 years ago? And why is Lan Wangji calling her Ancestor instead of (great-)grandmother or something? She was the sect leader, he's the sect leader's little brother, he should know the actual relation! I understand that censorship happened, but surely at least the Xue Chonghai bits could've been over 100 years ago? 300, maybe? And Lan Yi and Baoshan Sanren over 100 years ago – or have Lan Wangji call her Aunty or something.

Somewhat relatedly, I wonder about the menstrual supplies of Dixing. Do they all use rags, or some cave moss, or is there a flourishing trade in smuggled pads and tampons? Did Zhu Jiu finance his operation by selling Tampax?

Unrelatedly, 音阙诗听's songs have been a good source of inspiration. In addition to 立春/start of spring inspiring Welcome, Spring (Guardian) last week, 芒种/grain in ear inspired Falling Flowers Reflected on the River (CQL) and 霜降/frost descends inspired today's Still on My Heart (MDZS). They'll release another one on the 19th, which I'll probably draw inspiration from, and there are a few other nice ones to lean on should inspiration run low.

Comments

[jo_lasalle]

I find the 100 years a bad choice too. Mostly because I find it too short a time frame for people to not remember what happened to the Yin metal pieces. 100 years is way too little time (even without taking into account potentially different ageing of cultivators?) for this much to get lost, certainly if you have a society that writes books...

[extrapenguin]

Yeah, comparing what people in the drama know of the Yin metal (100 years ago) vs what people in the novel know of the happenings of 400 years ago, it's almost as if they had written in something like 400 years and then had to scrub it for some reason? The common trope is that cultivators live for centuries, but of course, in the MDZS world cultivation seems to mean you're dead by 50 (unless you're Lan Qiren).

[ratbones]

Dixing obviously has textiles, so they could make pads and tampons from whatever fiber they're using for clothes, I assume. No idea what fiber that is, though. But a lot of our menstrual products have a plastic component; do we know if Dixing has plastics? Oh hell, I have just remembered that condoms are a thing. What's the Dixing birth control and safer sex situation? I'm betting it isn't great, even if they have latex. Sorry no answers just more questions :P

[extrapenguin]

Their mainstream clothes all look modern, so maybe they're all smuggled from the surface? (Except for the robes of the Regent et al – but maybe they bought those from a hanfu shop? ... Okay, now I'm imagining the Regent going clothes shopping on the Lord's behalf on some surface shop.) Though clothes nontheless give them loads of things to make rags from later.

What's the Dixing birth control and safer sex situation?
Well, melannen has a post on contraception & childrearing that gives some idea of what contraceptive options would be available even in the absence of modern Earth contraceptive tech. I imagine some people also have useful Dixing powers? Or some cave plant that works as a hormonal contraceptive.

[ratbones]

I've always assumed that their clothing was manufactured in Dixing (Dixing has to have some kind of economy...and if they have food crops of some sort, it doesn't seem that weird for them to have a fiber crop too? Ooh - mycelium textiles, maybe?) but it's actually suspicious how very similar the streetwear is to Dragon City's. So I could accept that there's probably smuggling going on.

Except for the robes of the Regent et al – but maybe they bought those from a hanfu shop?
L O L. I am so embarrassed for everyone.

That post is really interesting, wow that is a LOT of info! Thanks! ...I would not want to be the person in my neighborhood of Dixing with the contraceptive power. Well, okay, you'd have job security for life, but you'd also know things about everyone.

[extrapenguin]

Ooh - mycelium textiles, maybe?) but it's actually suspicious how very similar the streetwear is to Dragon City's. So I could accept that there's probably smuggling going on.
I'm willing to buy that they have their own textiles, but Haixing streetwear is prestige, so the only people who use the native things are the officials. Tradition loses to coolness. :P

...I would not want to be the person in my neighborhood of Dixing with the contraceptive power. Well, okay, you'd have job security for life, but you'd also know things about everyone.
Depending on how the power worked, it might be a better power than a lot of other ones with good job security? (Contraceptor vs poop teleporter, frex.)

[ratbones]

Depending on how the power worked, it might be a better power than a lot of other ones with good job security? (Contraceptor vs poop teleporter, frex.)
Fair point. Well, I'd usually prefer a dirty job to an embarrassing one, but POOP TELEPORTER. And I do love that job title -- picture the business card.

Rat Bones
Contraceptor

[extrapenguin]

The nightsoilmen are an important piece of any functional city! Unless Dixing has plumbing. Perhaps the Palace has plumbing, and everyone else has chamberpots they empty into the reservoirs which the poop teleporters regularly empty to the fields where they grow their chemosynthesizing mushrooms? ...yes, I suppose it's a good idea that I have "sewage infrastructure worldbuilding" in my likes for exchanges. *g*

Rat Bones
Contraceptor

Yes! That is a wonderful business card.

[china_shop]

Somewhat relatedly, I wonder about the menstrual supplies of Dixing. Do they all use rags, or some cave moss, or is there a flourishing trade in smuggled pads and tampons? Did Zhu Jiu finance his operation by selling Tampax?

See, this is the kind of question that inevitably leads me down a rabbit hole of wondering about the whole monetary/economic system of Dixing. Is it feudal? Because didn't feudalism work by the peasants feeding themselves off the land and paying taxes to the lords? From what we see, arable land is in pretty short supply (though who knows what underground botany is like?! maybe plants live off dark energy instead of sunlight!)... is that why some of the random passersby in the Dixing streets are carrying pickaxes or ropes? Is mining the new farming?

Or is there industry, and that's where all the clothes come from? What else do they produce? Is there currency? Banking? How do unemployed people live?

Or is it something else entirely?

(Also, now I vaguely want to write half a dozen stories about menstrual supplies in my post-canon school 'verse. /o\)

[extrapenguin]

Oh yes, Dixing's economy! Indeed. How do they feed themselves? I can only conclude that there is a steady supply of chemosynthesizing plants to live off of, or things that eat Dixing's natural dark energy (but in that case, how long will Dixing's natural dark energy last?) since it's hard to mine when you're starving. As for the rest of the economy, they must have trade with Haixing to get all the modern clothes, so I guess they trade something upstairs? Maybe Zhu Jiu finances his operation by selling ~rocks with good vibes~ to hippies who are into woo. IDK. They must have some sort of money, unless the bartender is being paid in chickens or something. Maybe they use surface money in lieu of having their own currency? I don't think there's much of a formal economy, though – I'd expect they're mostly subsistence farmers, and work is more of the unofficial/home-sphere sort than official employment.

(Also, now I vaguely want to write half a dozen stories about menstrual supplies in my post-canon school 'verse. /o\)
LOL!

[china_shop]

Presumably while the Hallows were fused to make an energy source it wasn't an issue, but after that -- famine and population collapse? People with plant-related powers either gaining power or being drafted into service in the rice fields?

I assume dark energy is self-renewing. Hmm, why do I think that?

They must have some sort of money, unless the bartender is being paid in chickens or something.

Hee! Yes! I didn't get the impression there was enough traffic between the two worlds for Haixing money to have made it to general use in Dixing, though.

Maybe Zhu Jiu finances his operation by selling ~rocks with good vibes~ to hippies who are into woo.

Ha! If they're all sensitive and into woo, they should have enough sense to steer clear of him! ;-)

[extrapenguin]

People with plant-related powers either gaining power or being drafted into service in the rice fields?
Plausible, but OTOH they just let Hua Yuzhu leave, and she definitely had her powers already in Dixing. IDK.

Ha! If they're all sensitive and into woo, they should have enough sense to steer clear of him! ;-)
But if he's the only source of fancy dark energy rocks...

[ehyde]

Timeline issues aside, I just thought it was such a missed opportunity to have an ancient villain with ties to Baoshan Sanren and not use Yanling Daoren. He's pretty much free real estate!

[extrapenguin]

Yeah! He even did terrible things in canon!

[thawrecka]

The greater details on The Untamed make less sense the more I think of them, but now I'm wondering about the menstrual supplies situation, too. That's a potential research rabbit hole it would be easy to go down.

[extrapenguin]

It's one part research rabbit hole, one part dark energy worldbuilding rabbit hole... Not that I'd complain.

[tinny]

It's fun, you keep getting inspired by music, and I am always inspired by images. :D Different muses ftw!

[extrapenguin]

Different strokes for different folks!