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The first time he doesn't even meet Wei Wuxian. One day while he's rendering aide to disciples fresh off the field of battle a puppet probably controlled by the Stygian Tiger Amulet kills Wen Ning and that's that. The war against the other sects is likely lost to Wei Wuxian but Wen Ning only learns that later, too busy choking on his own blood to take in any extra information. Who knows what happens to his sister.
The second time, he does things a little different. He sticks closer to his sister — if he's going to die again he wants to be near her. She's assigned to the Yiling supervisory office. They get word that Lotus Pier has fallen, and then later they get word that it's been retaken in the most unnatural of ways.
"You should go hide with the others," his sister says, but Wen Ning doesn't. He stays with his sister.
He sees Wei Wuxian this time, hears his flute. Dies just the same as before, but now knows why.
The third time he goes with his sister to Gusu and actually meets Wei Wuxian.
He's cheerful and kind. He's killed Wen Ning twice but he smiles and smiles, like Wen Ning could be his friend. He doesn't know that Wen Ning is the enemy. He doesn't know what he's about to lose.
"You should stay away from him," his sister says, but staying away from Wei Wuxian definitely hasn't helped.
Maybe getting close to him will?
Wen Ning leaves early for Lotus Pier, against his sister's wishes. "How do you even know it will be attacked?" she asks, and he has no answer. He knows he has to do something or they'll all die, all of them, but he gets there and — he gets there before it's even fallen but —
Wen Ning was never a very good fighter. He can't find Wei Wuxian and he's wearing Wen robes. A terrifying woman in Jiang robes who must be Madame Yu cuts him down before he can even offer to help. He doesn't know what happens after that.
The fourth time he listens to his sister and does nothing about Lotus Pier; later they learn that Jiang Cheng died a terrible death and Wei Wuxian quickly followed during a failed rescue attempt.
Or.
Well.
That's what they think for months.
Then things start crawling out of the Burial Mounds. Then they start seeing things out of the corner of their eyes.
Wen Ning learns that he really, really should go to Lotus Pier and try to help.
The fifth time he times his arrival in Lotus Pier for after Jiang Cheng has been captured but before Wei Wuxian arrives. He keeps Wei Wuxian from being caught, he helps Wei Wuxian find Jiang Cheng, and then he creates the distraction that will let them escape.
He doesn't hide his tracks well enough and he doesn't think to go with Wei Wuxian. He dies later that night, core crushed, crying for his sister.
"Pathetic," Wen Chao says. "They'll never even thank you."
It takes him until attempt nine to get that part right. He poisons them, he hustles Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian away, he even manages to collect their parents' remains. And then he takes them to his sister.
She looks at him like this was inevitable, and Wen Ning thinks it was. The universe is like a puzzle box; there's only one set of good moves that will let him and his sister come out of this war alive and together and Wen Ning is going to find it.
Things don't really go so well, though. Jiang Cheng gets Wei Wuxian's golden core — Wen Ning knows Wei Wuxian doesn't need it to be powerful, but it still hurts to watch — and then Wei Wuxian disappears, but Wen Ning and his sister have too many of their own problems.
This is the longest they've both lived since Wen Ning's first and second time, and now Wei Wuxian won't want to kill them, but they've made an enemy of Wen Chao, even if he hasn't realized it yet.
"Maybe we should have gone with Young Master Jiang," Wen Ning says to his sister one night.
"It wouldn't have been any safer where he was going," Wen Qing says.
Wen Ning understands. Nowhere is safe.
They travel. They try to keep their heads down. They get separated. A Jin disciple drives one of the spirit-attraction flags through Wen Ning's gut and it's by far the most painful way Wen Ning has died yet.
But it's okay. He's ready to start again. Ready to see that bright-faced friendly Wei Wuxian in Gusu, ready to do his best, ready to see his sister again.
It's okay that it's over, he tells himself, but then it's not over. Wei Wuxian comes for him and — and it's a blur but — but Wen Ning has never been so powerful. Never been so able to make sure no one hurts his people.
Never been so out of control.
Ghost General, they call him after that. And always there's Wei Wuxian next to him, his friend, his several-times killer, his lynchpin in this puzzle box. How strange to find that Wei Wuxian felt so strongly about him dying.
Wen Ning misses food and sleep, misses having warm skin and control of himself, but it's worth it for extra time with his sister. It's worth it just to see how far Wei Wuxian will go for him, to have proof that this isn't a thankless task.
"If we turn ourselves in," his sister says, "they may let him live."
It would have been unthinkable, before, but now it seems like a fair trade. He and his sister have lived longer than ever before (not that she knows it) and with their family, too.
This has been a good attempt, Wen Ning thinks. He's learned so much, and he'll be sure to get even farther along next time. He'll miss this version of his sister and that will be difficult, but he misses every version of his sister, so one more is fine.
He follows after his sister, but he doesn't get to start again — Wen Ning outlives his sister, which he's never done before. It should be the worst ending imaginable, but little A-Yuan grows up so well and so happily. It's proof that Wen Ning might one day succeed completely.
He decides he'll try a tenth time, but it's almost hard to know where to begin.
His sister must be saved. And A-Yuan, and the others. And not just Wei Wuxian (although obviously Wei Wuxian) but Wei Wuxian's family, as well. Jiang Cheng's golden core and Jiang Yanli, at the very least. And there are others, too — Wen Ning can't imagine Wei Wuxian or A-Yuan without Lan Wangji, and does feel he probably owes it to Jin Zixuan to try not to get him killed.
It's a long list, it's such a long list, and Wen Ning doesn't want to work on it for another ten attempts before he gets even close to getting it right.
Wen Ning goes to Gusu with his sister. He makes friends with Wei Wuxian. He decides that making friends has always been an excellent way to solve his many, many problems.
"Young Master Nie," he says nervously one afternoon, having tracked down Nie Huaisang and somewhat, admittedly, taken the opportunity to corner him so they can talk alone.
"Young Master Wen," Nie Huaisang replies. "How can I be of help? Well, I probably can't — I'm not useful for much."
Wen Ning does not miss the way his eyes dart nervously — looking for an exit, a friend, or additional threats — nor the way he's slightly moved in front of the bird cage he had been fiddling with. The bird he's caught inside is singing sweetly, and Wen Ning hates to be thought of as a threat against it. He's never hurt a bird, he never would, but he understands why Nie Huaisang would think he might.
The Nie sect and the Wen sect have a great deal of tension, even now, and the Wen sect did after all steal away the life of Nie Huaisang's father. If Nie Mingjue had know there would be Wen disciples at Cloud Recesses, he surely wouldn't have sent his younger brother to study there.
"It's a little complicated," Wen Ning says, after hesitating for long enough that the break in conversation is notably awkward. "Do the Nie ever take on new branch clans?"
Nie Huaisang flips a fan open, fidgets, and says, "Well, I don't know, sometimes, probably, I suppose we must. I'm not much for reading that kind of dry history, though."
Wen Ning doesn't really believe that, but it's not worth it to argue. He says, "My sister will be angry, but I have an idea..."
If he's lucky, this will be the last attempt. If he's unlucky...well, he thinks he'll still enjoy Nie Huaisang's company.