Jin Guangyao (all-things-to-all-men)
| Other Names | Lianfang-zun, Sect Leader Jin, A-Yao |
| Setting | The Untamed |
| Facecast | Zhu Zanjin |
Jin Guangyao is the continuation of argona's take on Meng Yao, split into a separate instance for gallery convenience.
History
For Jin Guangyao's earlier history, see here.
[Transition to Jin Guangyao]
[Wei Wuxian's death]
Jin Guangyao identifies Qin Su, the daughter of one of Jin Guangshan's men, as a suitable marriage candidate. He spends months working his father and her family into agreement. Even after relenting, Jin Guangshan digs his heels in during the wedding ceremony planning process. Feeling threatened by his father's unreliable support, Jin Guangyao suggests that they consummate the marriage in advance of the ceremony to secure their union. Two weeks later, right before the wedding ceremony, Jin Guangyao is informed that Qin Su's mother was raped by Jin Guangshan and Qin Su is actually his half-sister.
Jin Guangyao does not tell anyone else or call off the wedding ceremony. He marries Qin Su but never touches her sexually again. Qin Su figures that this is because her husband is gay, since she is not blind to his relationship with Lan Xichen. She cares about him, and Jin Guangyao genuinely likes her. He was planning to have Qin Su declared (and/or made) to be infertile, and then under her approval secretly sire an heir with another woman. Before he can put this into motion, they discover that Qin Su is already pregnant. Their son Jin Rusong is born a year and a half after Wei Wuxian's death.
[Second divorce]
[Nie Mingjue's death]
[Marriage to Qin Su]
[Jin Guangshan's death]
Jin Guangyao had planned to kill his son since he discovered his conception. He tries not to become attached, but does in fact care deeply about Rusong. As each year goes by without the appearance of potentially suspicious developmental delays, Jin Guangyao postpones the need for him to die. When Jin Rusong is six years old, he is captured by a small group of Jin Guangyao's political opponents. They threaten to kill him. Jin Guangyao waits two days to announce that he's just received their threat and take any action.
Jin Rusong is killed before he can be rescued. Jin Guangyao puts on a big show of shock and grief and fury. He possesses genuine grief and distress to channel into this performance, discarding his own responsibility for his son's death and allowing himself to feel wronged and devastated. He has the entire small sect of the culprits wiped out in vengeance; the vast majority of those killed were entirely innocent.
[After Wei Wuxian's resurrection]
[Guanyin Temple]
Personality
See here.
[Notes on character development]
Relationships
- Lan Xichen (Soulmate, sworn brother)
- Calls Er-ge (Second Brother), is called A-Yao
- "In a grey world, he's like white moonlight."
- The only person to not lose their trust in him instantly. The person Guangyao desires most to help and least to hurt. Jin Guangyao often manipulates Lan Xichen in ways he would consider to be benign, sometimes seeing it as protecting Lan Xichen from information that he would find distressing and doesn't need to know.
- Nie Mingjue (Boyfriend, ex-boyfriend, sworn brother)
- Calls Da-ge (Eldest Brother), is called Jin Guangyao
- Extremely messy second divorce, after which Jin Guangyao decides that Nie Mingjue never loved him and always saw him as lesser and despicable, that no matter how hard Jin Guangyao works to ascend ranks, Nie Mingjue will never value him or see him as equal.
- Da-ge is the only murder he ever feels haunted by.
- Nie Huaisang
- Calls Huaisang, is called San-ge (Third Brother)
- Yikes
- Jin Guangshan (Father)
- Calls Father, is called Guangyao
- Yikes
- Jin Zixuan (Half-brother)
- Calls Zixuan, is eventually called A-Yao
- Jin Zixuan is the only member of Jin Guangyao's family to accept him and acknowledge his hard work, calling him A-Yao and trying to convince their father to give him more credit.
- Jin Zixun (Cousin)
- Calls Zixun, is called Jin Guangyao
- Zixun thinks of Jin Guangyao like dirt, and acts like it. Jin Guangyao continues to make efforts to get along with him, though they stop being sincere very quickly.
- Madam Jin (Not-Mother)
- Calls Mother, which she does not appreciate
- He tries hard to please her; she hates him and rarely acknowledges him, is openly frustrated when they do interact.
- Lan Wangji (Brother-in-law, approximately)
- Calls Wangji post-timeskip, is called Sect Leader Jin
- Jin Guangyao tries to fall into the role of Lan Wangji's bonus older brother the way he does for Nie Huaisang. Lan Wangji is completely bemused by
this, but never treats him with disrespect so Jin Guangyao does not resent him for his disinterest.this. Sort of the dynamic of your dad's new girlfriend trying to be friendly with you when you are a sullen teenager.
- Calls Sect Leader Su > Minshan, is called Sect Leader Jin
- They respect each other, and they are both starved for respect. Su She thinks they are friends, and he is not strictly wrong.
- Calls Chengmei, is called Jin Guangyao
- Xue Yang is like a feral neighborhood dog that Jin Guangyao takes on walks because it pays well.
Trivia
- The screen name "all-things-to-all-men" is taken from the translated lyrics of Jin Guangyao's Official OST Song, seen below. These lyrics are also quoted in the glowfic character pages of both Meng Yao (not-a-single-sin) and Jin Guangyao (all-things-to-all-men). Seen below:
The more humble you are, the more terrified you are
Can’t bear to touch anything in this world
You froze your unfeeling heart and put on a moving act
The more eloquent you are, the more inarticulate you feel
They’re all to fill up the vacantness in your heart
You try to be all things to all men.
But who knows who you truly are?
[...]
As if a warning, and as if self-mockery
You lamented that life is destined to be short
And how many people in your life are willing to know who you truly are?
Willing to know?