White Magnolia, Pink Chrysanthemum is a Mulan AU fanfic, where Mulan is born as a man named Ping.
Read here
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This fanfiction contains examples of:
- Adapted Out:
- Mushu doesn't appear here. Instead, "Mushu" was the name of Grandmother's husband. Ling is the one who put the apple in the arrow as a prank to get Ping in trouble with Shang.
- Little Brother and Cri-Kee doesn't appear either. Although Little Brother shows up as the pet of Shang and Quinmei's children.
- Adaptation Relationship Overhaul: Fa Zhou and General Li are close friends here, while they presumably never met in person in canon. Which results in Ping meeting Shang sooner than Mulan would in the film.
- Adaptational Nice Guy: Yao, Ling, and Chien Po were much nicer to Ping upon their introductions. Though Yao and Ling still tease Ping and play pranks on him.
- Adaptational Sexuality:
- Shang is gay here, and thus falls in love with Ping.
- The Emperor reveals to Shang that he himself was once in love with a man (a general who trained Shang's father), but had to marry his bride to continue the lineage of the royal family.
- All Gays are Promiscuous: Shang and Ping enjoy each other's company, and can never get enough.
- The Beard: Shang's wife Quinmei.
- Crazy Jealous Guy: Shang, when he noticed his second-lieutenant Fang being so close to Ping. That is because Fang is a fan of Ping's opera performances.
- Crosscast Role: In-Universe, Ping is a nándàn, which is a male opera actor who performs female roles.
- Death by Adaptation: Grandmother Fa passed away at the end of the fic.
- Death by Childbirth: Quinmei falls ill during her pregnancy, leading to her death after giving birth to Shang's twins.
- Demoted to Extra: Shan-Yu and the Huns. Due to the fanfic focusing more on Ping and Shang's growing relationship.
- Doomed by Canon: General Li still gets killed by the Huns.
- Everyone Can See It: General Li, Grandmother Fa, and all the men at the training camp can tell there's something going on between Ping and Shang.
- Gender Flip: Mulan is born a man, and his name is Ping.
- Jerkass Ball: Due to the stress of training the men, Shang vents most of his frustration onto Ping, when it's clear that he's unfit to become a soldier.
- Kiss of Distraction: While disguised as one of the Emperor's concubine, Ping kisses Shan-Yu on the lips to both stop him from trying to kill the Emperor and to allow Shang to sneak from behind. Shang was briefly shocked, and shuddered at the display.
- Knew It All Along: It's revealed that Ping's parents were told by a fortune teller that their second child would be a girl. But Grandmother Fa didn't believe in the "quack", and guessed correctly that he'd be a boy.
- Long-Haired Pretty Boy: Ping, again.
- Love at First Sight: Shang falls in love Ping the moment he saw him on stage, dressed as a woman and singing.
- Masculine–Feminine Gay Couple: Shang and Ping.
- Mythology Gag: The name "Mulan" is heard throughout the fanfic. It was the name Ping was intended to be called when his parents thought their second child would be a girl. At one point, Ping wished he was a woman but realize he'd be lousy, basically describing Mulan at the start of the film. Ping named one of Shang and Quinmei's twins Mulan.
- Named by the Adaptation: Fa Li is named Zanjun. In Chinese culture, women keep their surnames upon marriage, though Fa Li has the same surname as her husband.
- Open Secret: The men at training camp become aware of Shang and Ping's relationship.
- Open-Minded Parent:
- Grandmother Fa, as she supports Ping's relationship with Shang. Though she warns Shang to treat her grandson right or she'll return as a ghost and have her ancestors upon him.
- General Li appears to accept his son having feelings for Ping. But he also tells him that he must marry a wife to bear a son to continue their family lineage.
- Original Character:
- Ping has an older brother named Minling. He is said to have joined the army in his wife's family's behalf, forcing Ping to join the army on his father's behalf. Sadly, he was killed in battle. Although some versions of Mulan's tale mentions her having a little brother, while others mention a sister; so Minling could be a nod to the protagonist having a sibling.
- Fang, second lieutenant in the army, who's a big fan of Ping's performances.
- Quinmei.
- Outliving One's Offspring: Zhou and Zanjun were devastated when they got news that Minling was killed in battle. So they assume the same with Ping, until he returned home.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: Not a villain, but still a jerk. Chi-Fu is disgusted with Ping's lifestyle choice, even calls him a "whore".
- Raging Stiffie: We get a lot of descriptions of Shang and Ping getting hard for each other.
- Shipper on Deck: The Emperor notices the attraction between Shang and Ping, and approves of their relationship.
- Unfortunate Name: Yao and Ling laugh at Ping's full name.Ping: (after being told why it's funny) Oh gods! Why am I a joke to you, gods?
- Ungrateful Bastard: Like in the film, Chi-Fu doesn't thank Ping for saving China. Even accuses him of making a deliberate attempt at his life.
- "Well Done, Son" Guy: Ping sometimes feels that he disappointed his parents for not being the son they wanted. Being a famous nándàn is his way of bringing honor to his family.
