![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
Zhou Zishu - 50 Sentences
Nov. 4th, 2025 03:09 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tarlanxCharacter: Zhou Zishu
Fandom: Word of Honor (TV)
Theme set: Alpha
Rating: PG GEN and SLASH
Warnings: none apply
01 SPEAK
When he spoke people tended to listen, perhaps because he did not tend to speak that often, and when he did those who were not listening tended to die.
02 TOUCH
With the nails in his body he was already losing his sense of taste, smell and sight but what he truly feared was the day he would no longer be able to feel the sword in his hand.
03 MEMORY
As he poured a tribute drink across the table his thoughts turned to memories of happier days, of laughing and singing with Beiyuan and Jiuxiao, and he fought to hold back the tears of loss.
04 VANILLA
For someone who had once commanded hundreds of assassins he had led quite a sheltered and celibate life, making him seem very chaste and vanilla in comparison to a hedonist like Wen Kexing.
05 CHOCOLATE
The first time he tasted chocolate he really wasn't sure what to make of it as it was neither sweet nor bitter but as the centuries passed he found himself craving it almost as much as Lao Wen.
06 WAYS AND MEANS
Zishu found Lao Wen confusing as there were many ways to accomplish his revenge, especially when he had the resources of Ghost Valley behind him, and yet he was going about it all wrong.
07 BELIEF
Zishu had wrongly believed in many people over his life, especially his cousin Prince Jin, but he never felt more certain in his belief than when he was standing by Lao Wen's side.
08 LINGER
He had put the nails in his body slowly over time, wanting to escape the darkness he had fallen into, aware he would only linger on for a few years but at least he would die with the sun on his face.
09 LUMINANCE
Nothing was more beautiful to Zishu than the smile on Lao Wen's face and the brilliant sparkle in his eyes, like a summer sun bursting across the sky after years spent in the darkness of winter.
10 ORNAMENT
The mirror was too burnished to show him the pinkness of his cheeks as Lao Wen placed his own jade hairpin into Zishu's hair, but he felt the heat of that pleasured blush to the tips of his toes.
11 COUP DE FOUDRE
He had always refused to believe in love at first sight but years later he had to admit there had been something captivating about Wen Kexing from the moment their eyes first met in Yue.
12 ARCHWAY
When he looked back at the arched window at Mirror Lake Sect, the man dressed in funeral white was gone but Zishu had a strong feeling they would meet again soon.
13 FATE
Fate had torn them apart and taken both of them to dark places but perhaps it was destiny that had Zishu choosing that particular spot to sunbathe on that pleasant afternoon in Yue.
14 PULSE
Wu Xi pressed his fingers against the pulse point, measuring the ebb and flow of Qi in Zishu's broken body, and Zishu could only wait in silence for his verdict.
15 ENVELOPE
A drunken Lao Wen was a happy man who became even more tactile, wrapping his arms around until Zishu was enveloped in his warm embrace, and Zishu could think of no place better to be.
16 COLD
The Six Harmonies method would leave him immortal and with it came a price of living off snow and ice, atop a cold mountain but it was a price he would willingly pay as long as he had Lao Wen to keep his heart warm.
17 NEED
Zishu believed he did not need anyone, abandoning the Window of Heaven for a lonely beggar's life, content to wander until his body gave out, but then he met Lao Wen and the need to live returned.
18 DRUNK
Judging by the grimace on Lao Wen's face the wine was either too cheap or had soured but Zishu could no longer taste it nor feel the effects of drinking too much.
19 MASK
His master had taught him the art of masks and he used it now to hide his true face, aware he needed to disappear before Prince Jin could drag him back into a life he had come to hate.
20 ROSE
As a child he could not wait to get up and start practising his martial arts but now he rarely rose with the dawn, much to Lao Wen's constant amusement.
21 TWO
The two of them made a decent home on the mountain, spending their days reading and teaching new disciples, but the best moments were when they were alone together wrapped in each other's arms.
22 FRESH
Catching the lake fish was easy but having already lost his sense of smell, Zishu could no longer tell if it was cooked or not, and he blamed the fresh fish when Chengling screwed up his eyes in disgust at the bitter taste.
23 BRIBE
There were many ways to extract information including torture, but Zishu knew the best way with Lao Wen was to bribe him with either sweets or kisses.
24 ERROR
As he walked away from Lao Wen he could feel his heart breaking at the mistake he had made, silently wishing he had never let himself believe this man could be his soulmate.
25 APPETITE
Lao Wen's actions proved he knew of Zishu's loss of appetite, brought on by the nails, as one more fat shrimp was carefully placed on a dish before him along with encouraging words to eat.
26 REFRAIN
The one thing his life as an assassin had taught him was to be cautious and refrain from doing anything that would make him stand out but now he had no need to merge into the shadows as Lao Wen always seemed to be standing in the spotlight.
27 FAMILY
Zishu thought he had lost everything, his brother disciples, his home, his reason to live, but that chance meeting in Yue had given him back everything he ever wanted, including a sense of family.
28 GRIEVE
He had lived by the motto, men don't shed tears, they shed blood, yet he could not hold back the tears when he realized Lao Wen was still alive and he was dying.
29 VAPOR
Several times each day Duan Pengju forced him to breathe in the vapor of the muscle relaxant, believing it would make him weak, unaware Zishu had lost all sense of smell some time ago and so could easily cleanse it with his qi.
30 TEA
Lao Wen had gained his revenge and as they celebrated he held up his cup for wine only to get tea, silently wishing he could tell Wu Xi it was already too late to save him as he had removed the nails himself, but he needed this last happy memory more than he needed to be drunk.
31 MEDICINE
He knew the medicine would be bitter and was willing to deceive Lao Wen just to make him take it, but months later he still rubbed his palm in amusement as he recalled having to slap it against Lao Wen's mouth to force him to swallow.
32 MOTH
Watching the moths dancing around the candles he thought he was the moth to Lao Wen's bright flame, unaware he was also the incandescent light to Lao Wen's moth.
33 PERFECT
He once believed a perfect world was where everyone he loved lived and all his enemies died but as he looked across in horror at Lao Wen's white-haired, bowed head he knew a perfect world required just the living presence of this one man.
34 ROPE
Lao Wen's plan was to give Zhao Jing just enough rope to hang himself and Zishu wished he had shared that plan with him despite his injuries as now they had even less time together before he died.
35 WIND
The wind that sent the funeral papers scattering through the temple courtyard was not a natural one and danger was closing in on them but Zishu knew he still needed more time to recover, perhaps more time than they had to spare.
36 CROSSROADS
After handing Chengling over to Zhao Jing, Zishu found himself standing at a crossroads where he could return to his former path as a wandering beggar, but as he turned to leave he thought of Chengling all alone in this cruel world and knew he would be taking a different road.
37 SUMMER
The heat of summer had given way to a warm autumn followed closely by Frost's Descent, and now the New Year loomed ahead of him and with it would come the arrival of Ye Baiyi, hopefully bringing Zishu good news of his friends, Beiyuan and Wu Xi.
38 CANDY
Lao Wen darted from one stall to another, sampling different cakes and sweets, like a small child visiting a market for the first time, and all Zishu could do was watch him in fascination... and hand over his money.
39 PHOTOGRAPH
There was a time when he had not expected to live beyond a few years, drinking himself to death before the nails finished the job, but here he was centuries later, both stunned and pleased by the new contraption that captured a perfect image of his beloved Lao Wen.
40 SPOON
Zishu could measure the growth of his relationship with Lao Wen from the way they went from sleeping far apart to the now familiar feel of strong arms embracing him from behind as they slept spooned together.
41 FOREST
Despite the overhanging trees Zishu could feel the heat of the sun beating down as they slowly made their way along the forest track, and though he pretended to be annoyed he was actually grateful for the cool breeze from Lao Wen's fan.
42 MIRROR
As he gazed in the mirror at Lao Wen's jade hairpin placed so casually into his hair, Zishu knew it was not a simple gift of friendship but one of love and courtship, and he joyfully accept both.
43 SMOKE
Faced with so many Scorpion assassins, Zishu knew he, Lao Wen and Chengling could stand and fight, but he was injured and Chengling was incapable of defending himself so the safest and easiest option was to simply throw a smoke bomb and run.
44 SHINE
Lao Wen said there was a light all around him, lifting a bloodied hand to try to touch it, and Zishu faltered because it was Lao Wen who was the true light, shining through the darkness of his life.
45 BALLOON
He had once felt awed by a sky filled with lanterns sending wishes to the heavens until they began to symbolize death and destruction, but these colorful, giant balloons crossing the lower slopes of the mountain made him feel awe like that child again.
46 VINE
A tangle of vines caught at his robes as he pushed through them to reach the inside of a second abandoned temple, and though he could have cleared them with a few swipes of Baiyi, he left them intact to provide more protection from the Ghosts following him and Chengling.
47 BUTTERFLY
Lao Wen thought Zishu was a hard taskmaster as they watched Chengling practising hard for hours on end but even he felt awed the day it all paid off and Qi filled the boy's wide meridians, like a butterfly unfolding its wings for the first time, just as Zishu hoped.
48 GLOVES
A martial arts practitioner at his level of immortality was able to use his Qi to moderate the temperature of his body very easily, preventing him from becoming too hot or too cold, so gloves were unnecessary, but Zishu pulled them on anyway just to make little Nian Xiang happy.
49 VENOM
It took all of Zishu's strength not to shiver in pleasure at the feel of Wen Kexing's lips upon his skin as he drew out the venom from the Drug Man's bite behind his shoulder.
50 REMAIN
Ye Baiyi said they would have to remain in the cold of the mountain and eat only ice and snow once they became immortal, and that would have been the case if Zishu had survived alone, but with Lao Wen beside him he could enjoy all the richness of life as long as they cultivated together.
Fandom: Word of Honor (TV)
Theme set: Alpha
Rating: PG GEN and SLASH
Warnings: none apply
Zhou Zishu - 50 Sentences
01 SPEAK
When he spoke people tended to listen, perhaps because he did not tend to speak that often, and when he did those who were not listening tended to die.
02 TOUCH
With the nails in his body he was already losing his sense of taste, smell and sight but what he truly feared was the day he would no longer be able to feel the sword in his hand.
03 MEMORY
As he poured a tribute drink across the table his thoughts turned to memories of happier days, of laughing and singing with Beiyuan and Jiuxiao, and he fought to hold back the tears of loss.
04 VANILLA
For someone who had once commanded hundreds of assassins he had led quite a sheltered and celibate life, making him seem very chaste and vanilla in comparison to a hedonist like Wen Kexing.
05 CHOCOLATE
The first time he tasted chocolate he really wasn't sure what to make of it as it was neither sweet nor bitter but as the centuries passed he found himself craving it almost as much as Lao Wen.
06 WAYS AND MEANS
Zishu found Lao Wen confusing as there were many ways to accomplish his revenge, especially when he had the resources of Ghost Valley behind him, and yet he was going about it all wrong.
07 BELIEF
Zishu had wrongly believed in many people over his life, especially his cousin Prince Jin, but he never felt more certain in his belief than when he was standing by Lao Wen's side.
08 LINGER
He had put the nails in his body slowly over time, wanting to escape the darkness he had fallen into, aware he would only linger on for a few years but at least he would die with the sun on his face.
09 LUMINANCE
Nothing was more beautiful to Zishu than the smile on Lao Wen's face and the brilliant sparkle in his eyes, like a summer sun bursting across the sky after years spent in the darkness of winter.
10 ORNAMENT
The mirror was too burnished to show him the pinkness of his cheeks as Lao Wen placed his own jade hairpin into Zishu's hair, but he felt the heat of that pleasured blush to the tips of his toes.
11 COUP DE FOUDRE
He had always refused to believe in love at first sight but years later he had to admit there had been something captivating about Wen Kexing from the moment their eyes first met in Yue.
12 ARCHWAY
When he looked back at the arched window at Mirror Lake Sect, the man dressed in funeral white was gone but Zishu had a strong feeling they would meet again soon.
13 FATE
Fate had torn them apart and taken both of them to dark places but perhaps it was destiny that had Zishu choosing that particular spot to sunbathe on that pleasant afternoon in Yue.
14 PULSE
Wu Xi pressed his fingers against the pulse point, measuring the ebb and flow of Qi in Zishu's broken body, and Zishu could only wait in silence for his verdict.
15 ENVELOPE
A drunken Lao Wen was a happy man who became even more tactile, wrapping his arms around until Zishu was enveloped in his warm embrace, and Zishu could think of no place better to be.
16 COLD
The Six Harmonies method would leave him immortal and with it came a price of living off snow and ice, atop a cold mountain but it was a price he would willingly pay as long as he had Lao Wen to keep his heart warm.
17 NEED
Zishu believed he did not need anyone, abandoning the Window of Heaven for a lonely beggar's life, content to wander until his body gave out, but then he met Lao Wen and the need to live returned.
18 DRUNK
Judging by the grimace on Lao Wen's face the wine was either too cheap or had soured but Zishu could no longer taste it nor feel the effects of drinking too much.
19 MASK
His master had taught him the art of masks and he used it now to hide his true face, aware he needed to disappear before Prince Jin could drag him back into a life he had come to hate.
20 ROSE
As a child he could not wait to get up and start practising his martial arts but now he rarely rose with the dawn, much to Lao Wen's constant amusement.
21 TWO
The two of them made a decent home on the mountain, spending their days reading and teaching new disciples, but the best moments were when they were alone together wrapped in each other's arms.
22 FRESH
Catching the lake fish was easy but having already lost his sense of smell, Zishu could no longer tell if it was cooked or not, and he blamed the fresh fish when Chengling screwed up his eyes in disgust at the bitter taste.
23 BRIBE
There were many ways to extract information including torture, but Zishu knew the best way with Lao Wen was to bribe him with either sweets or kisses.
24 ERROR
As he walked away from Lao Wen he could feel his heart breaking at the mistake he had made, silently wishing he had never let himself believe this man could be his soulmate.
25 APPETITE
Lao Wen's actions proved he knew of Zishu's loss of appetite, brought on by the nails, as one more fat shrimp was carefully placed on a dish before him along with encouraging words to eat.
26 REFRAIN
The one thing his life as an assassin had taught him was to be cautious and refrain from doing anything that would make him stand out but now he had no need to merge into the shadows as Lao Wen always seemed to be standing in the spotlight.
27 FAMILY
Zishu thought he had lost everything, his brother disciples, his home, his reason to live, but that chance meeting in Yue had given him back everything he ever wanted, including a sense of family.
28 GRIEVE
He had lived by the motto, men don't shed tears, they shed blood, yet he could not hold back the tears when he realized Lao Wen was still alive and he was dying.
29 VAPOR
Several times each day Duan Pengju forced him to breathe in the vapor of the muscle relaxant, believing it would make him weak, unaware Zishu had lost all sense of smell some time ago and so could easily cleanse it with his qi.
30 TEA
Lao Wen had gained his revenge and as they celebrated he held up his cup for wine only to get tea, silently wishing he could tell Wu Xi it was already too late to save him as he had removed the nails himself, but he needed this last happy memory more than he needed to be drunk.
31 MEDICINE
He knew the medicine would be bitter and was willing to deceive Lao Wen just to make him take it, but months later he still rubbed his palm in amusement as he recalled having to slap it against Lao Wen's mouth to force him to swallow.
32 MOTH
Watching the moths dancing around the candles he thought he was the moth to Lao Wen's bright flame, unaware he was also the incandescent light to Lao Wen's moth.
33 PERFECT
He once believed a perfect world was where everyone he loved lived and all his enemies died but as he looked across in horror at Lao Wen's white-haired, bowed head he knew a perfect world required just the living presence of this one man.
34 ROPE
Lao Wen's plan was to give Zhao Jing just enough rope to hang himself and Zishu wished he had shared that plan with him despite his injuries as now they had even less time together before he died.
35 WIND
The wind that sent the funeral papers scattering through the temple courtyard was not a natural one and danger was closing in on them but Zishu knew he still needed more time to recover, perhaps more time than they had to spare.
36 CROSSROADS
After handing Chengling over to Zhao Jing, Zishu found himself standing at a crossroads where he could return to his former path as a wandering beggar, but as he turned to leave he thought of Chengling all alone in this cruel world and knew he would be taking a different road.
37 SUMMER
The heat of summer had given way to a warm autumn followed closely by Frost's Descent, and now the New Year loomed ahead of him and with it would come the arrival of Ye Baiyi, hopefully bringing Zishu good news of his friends, Beiyuan and Wu Xi.
38 CANDY
Lao Wen darted from one stall to another, sampling different cakes and sweets, like a small child visiting a market for the first time, and all Zishu could do was watch him in fascination... and hand over his money.
39 PHOTOGRAPH
There was a time when he had not expected to live beyond a few years, drinking himself to death before the nails finished the job, but here he was centuries later, both stunned and pleased by the new contraption that captured a perfect image of his beloved Lao Wen.
40 SPOON
Zishu could measure the growth of his relationship with Lao Wen from the way they went from sleeping far apart to the now familiar feel of strong arms embracing him from behind as they slept spooned together.
41 FOREST
Despite the overhanging trees Zishu could feel the heat of the sun beating down as they slowly made their way along the forest track, and though he pretended to be annoyed he was actually grateful for the cool breeze from Lao Wen's fan.
42 MIRROR
As he gazed in the mirror at Lao Wen's jade hairpin placed so casually into his hair, Zishu knew it was not a simple gift of friendship but one of love and courtship, and he joyfully accept both.
43 SMOKE
Faced with so many Scorpion assassins, Zishu knew he, Lao Wen and Chengling could stand and fight, but he was injured and Chengling was incapable of defending himself so the safest and easiest option was to simply throw a smoke bomb and run.
44 SHINE
Lao Wen said there was a light all around him, lifting a bloodied hand to try to touch it, and Zishu faltered because it was Lao Wen who was the true light, shining through the darkness of his life.
45 BALLOON
He had once felt awed by a sky filled with lanterns sending wishes to the heavens until they began to symbolize death and destruction, but these colorful, giant balloons crossing the lower slopes of the mountain made him feel awe like that child again.
46 VINE
A tangle of vines caught at his robes as he pushed through them to reach the inside of a second abandoned temple, and though he could have cleared them with a few swipes of Baiyi, he left them intact to provide more protection from the Ghosts following him and Chengling.
47 BUTTERFLY
Lao Wen thought Zishu was a hard taskmaster as they watched Chengling practising hard for hours on end but even he felt awed the day it all paid off and Qi filled the boy's wide meridians, like a butterfly unfolding its wings for the first time, just as Zishu hoped.
48 GLOVES
A martial arts practitioner at his level of immortality was able to use his Qi to moderate the temperature of his body very easily, preventing him from becoming too hot or too cold, so gloves were unnecessary, but Zishu pulled them on anyway just to make little Nian Xiang happy.
49 VENOM
It took all of Zishu's strength not to shiver in pleasure at the feel of Wen Kexing's lips upon his skin as he drew out the venom from the Drug Man's bite behind his shoulder.
50 REMAIN
Ye Baiyi said they would have to remain in the cold of the mountain and eat only ice and snow once they became immortal, and that would have been the case if Zishu had survived alone, but with Lao Wen beside him he could enjoy all the richness of life as long as they cultivated together.
