Characters / Impenetrable Walls

The Imperial Family

Lan Xichen

Lan Xichen, the Son of Heaven

• Adaptational Sexuality: Potentially. Lan Xichen's sexual orientation is left unprecised in canon, but this story establishes him as placed on the asexuality spectrum.
• Cool Big Bro: He very much loves his younger brother and goes to worrying lengths to reunite him with his crush. Wei Wuxian notes how unusual it is for the Emperor to get along so well with his sibling.
• God-Emperor: He's the Son of Heaven, whose subjects consider as "beyond mortals" in every conceivable way.
• Gold and White Are Divine: As the Emperor, Lan Xichen is called the Son of Heaven, is identified by his elaborate gold robes, considered as "beyond mortals" and borderline worshipped by his subjects.
• Gossipy Hens: He's far too much interested in learning everything about his baby brother's romantic life, to Lan Wangji's utter dismay.
• Greater-Scope Paragon / Greater-Scope Villain: It's hard to determine where he falls, since his naming Wei Wuxian a concubine basically reduced the necromancer to a Sex Slave locked in a Gilded Cage, but he mainly aims to ensure Lan Wangji's conjugal happiness with Wei Wuxian.
• Innocently Insensitive: He's completely unaware his subjects fear or respect him too much to not follow his wishes, and is acting as if Wei Wuxian chose to become a concubine from his own will instead of being ordered to do so.
• I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: The Emperor gently encourages his brother to let himself find romantic fulfillment with his brand-new concubine. Before that, Lan Xichen searched for Wei Wuxian because he wanted for Lan Wangji to be reunited with his crush.
• Lie Back and Think of England: His sex life in a nutshell. He's very nice and gentle towards his concubines, but he bluntly admits he just aims to sire heirs and quench his yang energy.
• Privilege Makes You Evil: Downplayed as Lan Xichen is genuinely sweet-tempered... but he has been so spoiled rotten by his servants he doesn't think anything of abducting someone in the street and make him into a Sex Slave, just because his baby brother has a crush on this person.
• Royal "We": He only drops it once, as he expresses how happy he is to see Lan Wangji happy with his gift — Wei Wuxian as a concubine.
• Sheltered Aristocrat: Since his servants have catered every wish of his from birth, Lan Xichen has no idea about how the world truly works, and believes Wei Wuxian naturally will be happy to become his brother's concubine.
• Shipper on Deck: The greatest supporter of Wangxian ever — he outright abducted Wei Wuxian to name him Lan Wangji's concubine, sends them porn books as a gift and openly visits them to ask why they're not having sex already.

Lan Wangji

Lan Zhan, Hanguang-jun

• Bad Boss: The servants in the Imperial Palace complains he's impossible to satisfy, Mianmian genuinely thinks he will kill her for being too familiar with Wei Wuxian, and his outbursts when he's in a bad mood reduce every eunuch from the Palace of Quiescence to a Nervous Wreck.
• Be Careful What You Wish For: He wanted to bring Wei Wuxian to the Cloud Recesses because he wished to keep his beloved safe and besides him. He failed to consider that Wei Wuxian would be bound to follow the etiquette, completely ruining the intimacy and trust they built as they were fighting the Sunshot Campaign.
• Everyone Has Standards: He won't have sex with his concubine so long as Wei Wuxian doesn't feel at ease around him and submits out of obligation.
• Gold and White Are Divine: Not as blatantly worshipped as the Emperor, but the Imperial Brother is nonetheless acknowledged as ranking above mundane people and is associated with pristine white.
• Green-Eyed Monster: He's blatantly unhappy when he walks on Wei Wuxian teaching Mianmian cultivation, and steps down only when his concubine reassures him of the attendant's intent to leave the Imperial Palace soon.
• Innocently Insensitive:
  • His attempt to give Wei Wuxian his sword back sends the whole household in a panic, because a weapon in the Palace of Quiescence basically is a death sentence.
  • He offers to send a letter to Lotus Pier, as Jiang Cheng would have no other choice but to answer. Wei Wuxian begs him to not involve himself in the necromancer's family troubles.
  • He insists Wei Ying and his loved ones are safe now. Wei Wuxian is painfully aware the Wen Remnants still are endangered.
• I Love You Because I Can't Control You: Lan Wangji shows subtle distress in front of Wei Wuxian following court etiquette — because he didn't fell in love with a quiet, submissive concubine, but with the passionate and energetic Wei Ying from the Sunshot Campaign.
• King Incognito: Wei Wuxian is stunned to learn Hanguang-jun the war hero was Lan Wangji, the Imperial brother and first-rank prince.
• Princely Young Man: Even when he was fighting on the frontline with no one aware of his true identity, he was noted to have the bearing of a true gentleman.
• Royal Brat: Subtle, but Lan Wangji is just as horrendously spoiled rotten as his older brother. He thinks nothing of his brother casually offering him a Sex Slave (he gets better) and outright throws tantrums when things don't go his way.
• Royals Who Actually Do Something: He went to fight on the frontlines for the Sunshot Campaign, in spite of being a first-rank prince that could have stayed safe in the Cloud Recesses, and later investigates a clan's massacre.
• Single-Target Sexuality: No interest whatsoever for anyone not Wei Wuxian. He blatantly tells his concubine he has no wife or consorts and won't take any.
• Tantrum Throwing: He destroyed the training grounds when his concubine refused to spar with him, and is later mentioned to agressively play the zither out of frustration.
• White Sheep: The higher-ranked officials and eunuchs at court believe he's weird because he disapproves of bribery.
• You Need to Get Laid: Eunuchs and officials really want for him to unwind and stop running interference in court intrigues, so they throw Wei Wuxian at him. It's a mixed success.

Wei Wuxian

Wei Ying, the Yiling Patriarch, Concubine Wei

• Brought Down to Normal: He lost his golden core while he was fighting in the Sunshot Campaign and is desperately trying to keep this little fact under wraps.
• Didn't See That Coming: He certainly wasn't expecting the Emperor kidnapping him off the streets because the Imperial Brother needed a concubine.
• Go Mad from the Isolation: Already a mite unstable from living in the Burial Mounds, Wei Wuxian is then locked away in the Palace of Quiescence with very limited opportunities for intellectual stimulation and social interactions. He hangs on his sanity merely because he reminds himself it's supposed to be temporary until he can ran away.
• He Cleans Up Nicely: Wei Wuxian is taken to the Cloud Recesses with nothing but tattered old robes on his back. After being gifted as a concubine, he regularly bathes, is dressed in pristine white silk and Mianmian even does his hair and make-up.
• Innocent Fanservice Guy: As a concubine, everything he does and says is interpretated with a seductive slant. Wei Ying is nothing but literal and hints completely fly above his head.
• Innocently Insensitive: He does his best to act as quiet and submissive as he can, believing his Imperial husband would prefer him this way. Lan Wangji actually fell in love with his wild spirit, and is horrified to see Wei Ying forced to be a toy for the Imperial Brother's pleasure.
  • After learning what dual cultivation is, he's very eager to explore this new field of research. Lan Wangji is rather flustered and disappointed by the lack of romance.
• Like Parent, Like Child: Wei Wuxian isn't too hot about the concubine gig because he knows he takes after his mother, being possessed of a wandering and untamed temperament.
• Lineage Comes from the Father: Inverted; emphasis is put on him being the son of an Imperial Princess and as such worthy to become a concubine to the Imperial Brother.
• Oblivious to Love: Gifted as a Sex Slave, his servants constantly dropping hints, the Emperor sending him porn and asking him to stop playing with his brother's heart, and Wei Wuxian only twigs about Lan Wangji's maybe not platonic feelings towards him when the Imperial Brother outright kisses him on the lips.
• Rags to Royalty: From a starving rogue cultivator to an Imperial concubine. He's not very happy about the change, though.
• Royal Blood: His mother Cangse Sanren was an Imperial princess from the previous dynasty. Lan Xichen heavily insists upon this little fact when Wei Wuxian is introduced at court as Lan Wangji's concubine.
• Sex Slave: Being a concubine means he cannot refuse his Imperial husband's advances. Fortunately, Lan Wangji really wants for Wei Ying to have consensual sex with him.
• Significant Wardrobe Shift: In order to show he's now the Imperial Brother's property, Wei Wuxian is stripped off his tattered black and red robes to be dressed in silken white garments.
• Unexpected Virgin: Everybody at court believes he had a passionate, wildly sexual affair with the Imperial Brother while they were fighting in the Sunshot Campaign. Not only it's entirely false, Wei Ying is completely clueless about sex and the requirements to be a concubine.
• Virgin in a White Dress: He's dressed in pristine white after being gifted to Lan Wangji as a concubine, and it soon becomes apparent that he has no experience whatsoever regarding sex or romantic relationships.

Cangse Sanren

Princess Cangse, second-rank Imperial princess

• Honour Related Abuse: Since a barbarian lord wasn't considered a worthy spouse to an Imperial princess, the Empress offered her a white silk rope to hang herself with. Cangse Sanren declined the option.
• Maligned Mixed Marriage: Twice! First she was betrothed to a barbarian lord, with her mothers (adoptive and biological) deciding they would rather see her dead, and Cangse Sanren running away to become a cultivator was lauded because the candidate was that distateful. Then she fell in love with the extremely lowborn Wei Changze, and everyone condemned her for it.
• Rebellious Princess: She ran away to become a cultivator instead of bowing to her parents' wish for her to marry or die, and later scandalized everyone by falling in love with a servant.
• Runaway Fiancée: She stole her father's sword and became Baoshan Sanren's disciple in order to avoid to be married off to a barbarian lord.
• Taking a Third Option: Her father wanted to offer her as a bride to a barbarian lord, the Empress wanted her to hang herself to avoid such dishonour. She instead fled to Baoshan Sanren's mountain to learn cultivation.
• Uptown Girl: Her marriage to Wei Changze caused a huge scandal because he was a mere servant while she was an Imperial princess.

Consort Jiao

• Benevolent Boss: Strongly implied to be this to Mianmian, who secretly mourns her.
• Nothing Is Scarier: She was accused from treachery, and that's everything we know about her.
• Unperson: Since she was executed for treachery, people at court have to pretend there never was a Consort Jiao. Mianmian muses it makes mourning her very painful and difficult.

Attendants

Luo Qingyang

Mianmian

• For Want Of A Nail: She only escaped being executed with Consort Jiao and her whole household because she was loaned to another court lady this day.
• Hypercompetent Sidekick: She's much more informed of the Imperial Palace's functioning than Wei Wuxian, and she certainly knows more about what being a concubine entails — to her horrified shock.
• Lady-In-Waiting: First was one to Consort Jiao, then she was reassigned to Wei Wuxian.
• Platonic Life-Partners: Wei Wuxian needs to clarify he's not physically or romantically interested in her to Lan Wangji, she merely gives him pointers for his new life while he's training her as a cultivator.
• Servile Snarker: Very much so towards Wei Wuxian. She also serves as a Deconstruction, as she reveals nobles are free to beat her for being a smartass and it prevented her to be picked as a potential concubine.
• Shipper on Deck: Played for Drama — she's so invested in Wei Wuxian seducing the Imperial Brother because it's literally a matter of life or death for her.
• Stepford Smiler: She's hiding a lot of turmoil over her first mistress' demise, and she cannot mourn openly because Consort Jiao officially is a traitor.
• Sweet Polly Oliver: Disguises herself as a young male soldier in the Imperial Brother's retinue when he goes to Lanling.
• This Is Gonna Suck: Poor Mianmian really looks like she needs a strong drink after learning that Wei Wuxian not only didn't slept with the Imperial Brother, he's so much of a virgin he has no idea whatsoever of a concubine's main function.

Fenmian and Qinmian

• The Dividual: Except for their names, they're not given specific characterization.
• Harmful to Minors: Both are around fourteen years old, and poor Fenmian genuinely believed she would die for finding Suibian.
• Lady-In-Waiting: Wei Wuxian is their first posting.
• Shrinking Violet: Rather nervous around Wei Wuxian when they first meet him. It takes time for them to warm up to him.
• Textile Work Is Feminine: They're tasked with embroidering Wei Wuxian's concubine robes in his stead.
• Theme Naming: Qinmian means "hardworking" and Fenmian means "diligent". They also share the same ending with Mianmian.
• Unfortunate Names: Wei Wuxian's opinion of them, since it rather sounds objectifying.

Eunuchs

Su She

• Beleaguered Bureaucrat: He's the poor shmuck saddled with turning the very male Wei Wuxian into a suitable concubine, something that outright goes against tradition, because of the Emperor's whim.
• Eunuchs Are Evil: Downplayed, he's not actually evil but still a first-grade jerk towards Wei Wuxian and his bosses.
• Freudian Excuse: A man is named an Imperial concubine, just because the Emperor thought it would make his infamously dour and joyless brother happy, and if Su She cannot follow through he will be disposed of. Wei Wuxian actually gains a shred of empathy for the guy when he realizes Su She likely is stressed out of his mind.
• Hypocrite: Right after threatening Wei Wuxian for criticizing the Imperial family, Su She immediately complains about the Imperial Brother. Lampshaded by Wei Wuxian himself.
• Suspect Is Hatless: When Lan Wangji wants to know who took Suibian from Wei Wuxian, Wei Wuxian describes Su She as wearing a pale robe, having a high voice and smelling funny, aware that it could apply to any eunuch in the Palace.

Ma, Xiao and Gao

• Matron Chaperone: A male version with Eunuch Ma, who's supposed to ensure Wei Wuxian won't be fooling around with the maids... and completely fails at it because he just won't stop napping.
• Nervous Wreck: The Palace of Quiescence's eunuchs tend to be jumpy around Lan Wangji because of his Royal Brat tendences.
• Senior Sleep-Cycle: Eunuch Ma is described as elderly and his main preoccupation is finding a nice corner to doze off.
• Shipper on Deck: Played for Drama — they really want for Wei Wuxian to successfully seduce the Imperial Brother because a failure could see the whole household killed.

Jin Guangyao

• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Potentially. Wei Wuxian refuses to trust him on the grounds he's related to Jin Guangshang, and Lan Wangji definitely doesn't like him either, but there's nothing definite.
• Discriminate and Switch: Lan Wangji is rather unhappy with Wei Wuxian for immediately assuming an eunuch is up to no good, only for Wei Wuxian to explain his distrust of Jin Guangyao has nothing to do with his missing jewels and everything with him being a Jin.
• Go Look At The Distraction: He's hinted to have encouraged the Emperor to seek for Wei Wuxian, in the hopes that a concubine would distract the Imperial Brother from meddling in courtly intrigue.
• Gossipy Hens: Lan Wangji knows the dude is gonna inform the Emperor about the latest developments in his sex life.
• Odd Friendship: With Lan Xichen.