Fanfic / Hating the Hand Life has Dealt Us

Hating the Hand Life has Dealt Us is a crossover fic between The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System: Ren Zha Fanpai Zijiu Xitong and Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation: Mo Dao Zu Shi, written by anonkun on Archive of Our Own.

As foolish as Shen Jiu’s instincts told him it was, when he looked at Jiang Yanli and the home Jiang Cheng loved so much, he wanted to hope that maybe Jiang Cheng at least could have his own happiness.

As Jiang Cheng broke down, his home and family gone, Shen Jiu wondered why he had even bothered hoping for such a thing.

(Or: Jiang Cheng's soul remembers that it was Shen Jiu once upon a time. This changes... not enough. Not nearly enough.)

Contains the following tropes:

• Always Second Best: A huge problem of Shen Jiu and his reincarnation Jiang Cheng is that no matter how much he tries, someone (Luo Binghe for Shen Jiu, Wei Wuxian for Jiang Cheng) will effortlessly surpass him. It causes him a lot of trouble.
• A Shared Suffering: Jiang Cheng has this with Lan Wangji, and they share a tenous bond over Wei Wuxian's death. Their means of coping are vastly different, however, meaning that they clash a lot and are not on friendly terms.
• Beware the Nice Ones: Nie Huaisang manifests a disturbing enthusiasm about committing banditism and highway robbery, freaking Jin Zixuan and Jiang Cheng.
• Breather Episode: There are several scattered throughout the fic, but they become more obviously lighter as the story progresses and grows angstier.
  • Chapter 35^note The Sounds of Lotus Pier, which is a slice of life fluff chapter set in Lotus Pier before the hunting competition at Phoenix Mountain.
  • The latter half of Chapter 39^note Needing to Stay Firm and Chapter 40^note Jin Zixuan and the Art of Deduction both count as this as they are also slice of life chapters, instead of plot-centric chapters.
  • Chapter 44^note I Don't Understand, What is This Thing Called Happiness? is a generally fluffy chapter where Jin Ling is born and Shen Jiu finally starts believing that he can be happy.
  • The next chapter ^note ominously titled The You Who Wished To Live, Losing Sight of the Future starts out like one, but the Plot Twist is ruined as readers who are familiar with the original work are already aware that it will be subverted by Jin Zixuan's death.
  • A fair part of Chapter 53^note Child Raising, Shen Jiu's (Not-So?) Detested is about Shen Jiu and Jiang Cheng taking care of Jin Ling as a toddler.
  • Chapter 57^note Flower Viewing by the River is a chapter of mostly fluff, where Jiang Cheng and Jin Ling have a peaceful day watching fish near Yunmeng.
• Brilliant, but Lazy: Nie Huaisang is genuinely intelligent, but he doesn't want to be bothered with anything else but poetry, painting and goofing around.
• Butt-Monkey: Played for Laughs and lampshaded with Jin Zixuan, who is almost always the butt of Shen Jiu's snarky jabs.
  Jin Zixuan: Why is it always me though?
  Jiang Cheng: Because you're easier to make fun of than Huaisang, and I would never disrespect A-Jie like that.
• Combat Hand Fan: Shen Jiu can use any hand fan as one of these by channeling qi through them. He suggests that Nie Huaisang try to train with one of them and impresses him with a demonstration. He (and by extension Jiang Cheng) later use one as one of his weapons during the Sunshot Campaign, which Wei Wuxian points out.
• Death Seeker: Shen Jiu cannot understand why his awareness hadn't been dissolved after his horrendous demise, and isn't that bothered by the prospect of Jiang Cheng fully erasing him.
• Doting Parent: Jin Zixuan, who Jiang Cheng says is a "complete sap" when it comes to his son Jin Ling.
  Jiang Cheng: Zixuan was all, ‘Ah! My little son is going to be such an amazing swordsman when he grows up! A-Ling, you’re going to make papa so proud!’ What an idiot. A-Ling is going to be the most spoiled child ever at this rate.
• Emotion Suppression: Shen Jiu deals with Jin Zixuan's death in this manner, enabling him to focus on running the Jiang sect in Jiang Cheng's stead.
  Nie Huaisang: How did you do it? How did you move forward after everything?
  Shen Jiu: ...sometimes that is what you must do, regardless of how you feel.
• Expository Pronoun: A way to tell apart Jiang Cheng and Shen Jiu is by how they refer to themselves. Jiang Cheng uses "I", while Shen Jiu uses the more formal "this one" or variations thereof^note this sect leader, this uncle, etc..
• Fake Relationship: Mentioned as Nie Huaisang's plan to deter Jiang Cheng's suitors.
  Nie Huaisang: Oh, I know! Why don’t we pretend to court each other? Wait, Wanyin, come back-
• Flechette Storm: Shen Jiu can pull this off using qi-infused leaves (à la Shen Qingqiu), but he doesn't use too many of them in one go in this fic as Jiang Cheng isn't supposed to know this technique and needs to keep it a secret from other cultivators.
• Flip Personality: Shen Jiu is notably aloof and well-spoken, which clues Nie Huaisang in about Jiang Wanyin not being himself sometimes.
• Friendship Denial: Jiang Cheng and Jin Zixuan do this mutually despite them acting in a very friendly manner with each other in private.
  The two of them stared at each other, neither willing to back down and acknowledge the simple fact that they were people who had feelings and friends.
  They silently agreed to change the subject.
  • When questioned...
    Nie Huaisang: If you’re not friends, what are you?
    Jin Zixuan: A relationship with benefits. Uh, ranting benefits?
    Jiang Cheng: Acquaintances. Who sometimes talk shit to each other.
    Nie Huaisang: Sounds like friends to me.
• Friendship Trinket: There are two of these in the fic thus far, both of which mark the friendship between Jiang Cheng/Shen Jiu, Jin Zixuan and Nie Huaisang.
  • During the aftermath of the Xuanwu Incident, they exchange hairties as part of their disguise while sneaking past Wen territory. Jiang Cheng/Shen Jiu owns Nie Huaisang's hair ribbon, while Nie Huaisang and Jin Zixuan both own a half of Jiang Cheng's respectively. Jiang Cheng keeps the ribbon tied to his arm under his robes even after things settle down.
  • Later on, Nie Huaisang paints a set of fans with an inscription of an impromptu poem by Shen Jiu, Jin Zixuan and himself to give to Jiang Cheng and Jin Zixuan, as a keepsake for the bonds they had forged during the aforementioned journey. Shen Jiu does not use his as he sees it as too precious to use, revealing just how much he treasures it.
    Shen Jiu: This one would prefer not having their most treasured ones be damaged by use.
• Freudian Excuse Is No Excuse: Yes, Jin Guangyao was dealt a pretty crappy hand in life when he was born the son of a prostitute and a self-centered bastard who would never have loved him in a thousand years, but he was given several chances to build positive connections with other people and decided he wouldn't take them, so Jiang Wanyin isn't feeling too broken over his ultimate fate.
• Freudian Trio: Nie Huaisang is the Id mainly focused on doing whatever he wants, Jiang Wanyin is the Superego fretting about being proper and saving face (moreso when Shen Jiu is at the wheel) and Jin Zixuan is the Ego who struggles to reconcile his desire to be good with the obligations of his status.
• Heroic Safe Mode: Occurs several times throughout the story, usually in the form of Shen Jiu's personality taking over control of the body when Jiang Cheng is overwhelmed.
  Shen Jiu: You’re a complete mess right now. Shut up and let this one handle things until you’re back with some semblance of a stable mind, why don’t you?
  • Exaggerated after Jin Zixuan, Jiang Yanli and Wei Wuxian die in succession, whereupon Jiang Cheng retreats to the back of his mind and leaves Shen Jiu in charge, only coming out to interact with Jin Ling (and possibly Nie Huaisang).
• I Hate Past Me: Jiang Cheng is utterly appalled by Shen Jiu's life of misery and loathing, leading him to reject his previous incarnation's memories and form a Split Personality.
• I Need to Go Iron My Dog: Right after evading Wen patrols, Jin Zixuan muses he could claim he didn't immediately go back to Koi Tower because he wanted to visit brothels. Since his father is Jin Guangshan, it actually could work — to Jin Zixuan's dismay and his friends' utter disgust.
• In Spite of a Nail: Lampshaded in the synposis and within the fic itself. Despite Jiang Cheng remembering Shen Jiu's memories and creating a few minor differences from canon, they have no noticeable effect on the overarching plot of MDZS - the same events occur and the same people die. Justified, as the fic is canon compliant.
  This changes... not enough. Not nearly enough.
• Marry for Love: What Jin Zixuan wants to do.

Jin Zixuan: I’d rather fall in love with someone naturally than try to force myself to like someone for an arranged marriage.

• Later, he agrees to a Marriage of Convenience, at which point Jiang Cheng brings this up.
  Jin Zixuan: I do believe I could properly fall in love with your sister one day. And, well, I guess it would still be marrying out of love. Just a different love, you know?

• Marriage of Convenience: Jin Zixuan marries Jiang Yanli so he has a political reason for Lanling Jin to ally with and support the Yunmeng Jiang in the fight against the Wens.
• Misery Poker: Defied. After his brother dies, Nie Huaisang breaks down on Shen Jiu and calls himself selfish for doing so, as the other has been through much worse. To Shen Jiu's own bewilderment, this infuriates him.
  Shen Jiu: Don’t say such a stupid thing! So what if my situation was worse? What does that have to do with how you should feel!
• Mistaken for Gay: Jiang Cheng vehemently denies his friendship with Jin Zixuan, who misunderstands and thinks that Jiang Cheng is denying being in a gay relationship with him instead.
  Jiang Cheng: Wha- No! Huaisang, we're not...! Me and Jin Zixuan...?
  Jin Zixuan: We're not what? [pales] Cutsleeves? N-not that there's anything wrong with being a cutsleeve?
  Jiang Cheng: No, that's not it, you idiot! Friends! We're not ''friends''!
  • Jin Zixuan's response does not help recitify the misunderstanding at all.
  Jin Zixuan:Oh! Right, yes! We are definitely not that! Since we are not that, we also are definitely not together in that other way either!
• No Social Skills: Jin Zixuan is naturally warm-hearted but is so hopelessly clueless about interacting with people not related to him that he comes off as a Spoiled Brat.
• Not So Similar: Lampshaded by Nie Huaisang, regarding Jiang Cheng and Nie Mingjue. The inverse is also lampshaded for Jiang Cheng and Nie Huaisang himself in the same breath.
  Nie Huaisang: So similar, yet so different.
  If he was different from Nie Huaisang on the outside, and similar on the inside, then it was the opposite with Nie Mingjue. He supposed that was what Nie Huaisang was talking about.
• Obnoxious In-Laws: Subverted — Jiang Cheng was ready to thoroughly hate Jin Zixuan for insulting his precious shijie, only to befriend the Sheltered Aristocrat. He muses Wei Wuxian would likely murder him if he was to learn of it.
• Only Friend: Jiang Cheng acknowledges Nie Huaisang this during his stay in the Cloud Recesses, although Jin Zixuan becomes his friend not long after despite their mutual refusal to admit it. This comes true later when the latter dies.
  Jiang Cheng: Huaisang, you are both my best and worst friend.
  Nie Huaisang: Huh? [grins] Oh, I get it. Because I'm your only-
  Jiang Cheng: Don't say it out loud!
• Only Sane Man: Between the lazy and thug-aspirant Nie Huaisang and aloof Jiang Cheng with his mental problems, Jin Zixuan disturbingly becomes this.
• Past-Life Memories: Downplayed, as Shen Jiu keeps some details firmly under wraps and Jiang Cheng avoids to truly poke into his former incarnation's past out of fear.
• Pet the Dog: When Madam Yu finds her son practising his calligraphy, she bluntly calls him foolish but nonetheless praises his decision to have a skill of his own and reminds him to not stay awake too late in the night.
• Positive Friend Influence: Shen Jiu and Jin Zixuan have elements of this in their relationship. Jin Zixuan helps Shen Jiu open up and regain hope in the world, while Shen Jiu gives Jin Zixuan harsh but true criticisms, helping him grow out of his naivety.
• Pragmatic Hero: Due to Shen Jiu's influence, Jiang Cheng won't hesitate to hide a secret technique, disguise himself as a peasant and employ a demonic cultivator just to gain the upper edge in a fight.
• Reformed Criminal: Shen Jiu gives demonic cultivators the option to give up demonic cultivation and join Yunmeng Jiang instead if he deems them not too far gone to be saved.

• Reunion Vow: Defied. Before Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian set off for the Wen indoctrination camp, they talk to Jiang Yanli, who asks if their reassurances about coming home safe are a promise.
  For some reason, the idea of a ‘promise’ made Jiang Cheng uneasy. “There’s no need for it to be a promise. If we say we’re going to get through this, then we’ll get through this.”
• Safety in Indifference: Shen Jiu initially claims to Nie Huaisang that he does not care about the world, presumably for this reason. Shen Jiu eventually warms up to the rest of the cast as the story progresses and subverts this trope in Chapter 44^note I Don't Understand, What is This Thing Called Happiness?.
• Secret-Keeper: Nie Huaisang actually noticed Jiang Wanyin was behaving a mite too weirdly and ultimately confront him while they're on the road with Jin Zixuan. Both young men wind up deciding they're okay with their friend's weirdness and to not spread the word around.
• Split Personality: Consequence of Jiang Cheng's disgust and rejection of his past life, Shen Jiu is his own person stuck within his reincarnation's head who occasionally takes control. However, Jiang Cheng's mounting trauma leads him to rely more and more on Shen Jiu, slowly hinting at a Split-Personality Merge.
• Spotting the Thread: After getting his golden core restored, Jiang Cheng cannot help but notice how much the wild energy reminds him of Wei Wuxian.
• Talking to Themself: As Jiang Cheng and Shen Jiu share abstract emotions but not coherent thought, they do this if they need to talk to one another, although this doesn't occur very often.
• Trademark Favourite Food: If Shen Jiu enjoys tanghulu, Jiang Cheng prefers his sister's lotus root pork rib soup.
• Tragic Dream: Jiang Cheng's greatest wish was for his Dysfunctional Family to be truly loving and united. It never comes to pass.
• Tragic Keepsake: After Jin Zixuan dies, the hair ribbon exchanged between him, Jiang Cheng and Nie Huaisang becomes a painful reminder of his death instead.
  It wasn’t as if they could trade back at this point. Not with the other half of Jiang Cheng’s ribbon likely gone for good now.
• Vengeance Feels Empty: Discussed between Jiang Cheng and Nie Huaisang right before the latter launches his plot against the one responsible for his brother's demise. Huaisang's conclusion is that revenge won't bring Nie Mingjue back, but it will prevent Jin Guangyao from ruining more lives.
• War Is Hell: Jiang Cheng's opinion of war is that when you look at the events and consequences, war is seldom righteous.
• You Are Better Than You Think You Are:
  • Jin Zixuan bluntly tells Jiang Cheng that no, he doesn't believe the person who tries to help him to grow out of his naivety is rotten to the core.
  • Nie Huaisang reveals that he initially befriended Jiang Cheng because he reminded Nie Huaisang of his brother and because he was interesting, and tells Shen Jiu that he isn't as kind as Shen Jiu is making him out to be as he believes that his acts of friendship were all based off of ulterior motives. This does not dimish the value of what Huaisang has done for Jiang Cheng and Shen Jiu, and the latter makes it clear that he does not care about Nie Huaisang's supposed "ulterior motives".
    Shen Jiu: Is that supposed to change anything? Everyone has an ulterior motive behind wishing to get close to someone. You are making this far more complicated than it is.
• You Remind Me of X: Some of Jiang Cheng's difficulties with notable characters come from them triggering Shen Jiu.
  • Wei Wuxian is such a potent reminder of Luo Binghe for being a Street Urchin who nonetheless grows beloved by almost everyone he meets, Shen Jiu cannot help but feel wary of him. Then he starts to dabble into demonic cultivation, just like Luo Binghe started wielding the demonic blade Xin Mo...
  • Lan Xichen's soft countenance is a dead ringer for Yue Qingyuan, leading Jiang Cheng to avoid the Lan Sect heir as much as possible.
• Zero-Approval Gambit: Shen Jiu, in at least two instances:
  • He intentionally lets unsavoury rumors about himself spread with Nie Huaisang's (reluctant) help and fans them in order to deter other clans from attacking Lotus Pier using his reputation.
  • He also makes it seem like he has a Lost Lenore who he can never get over in order to deter any suitors, simultaneously spawning a whole (mostly unflattering) rumor mill about Jiang Cheng's love life and convincing the public that Jiang Cheng is a terrible romance option.
  • Nie Huaisang is understandably displeased by this gambit.
  Nie Huaisang: Why do you insist on painting yourself in the worst light possible? It pains me as both your confidant, and an artist! Let me paint you with beautiful lighting!