Wen Li is a main character in The Demon's Light. He owns a plant shop named Plant Empire in Silivia.
Appearance
Wen Li is an elderly man, though spry and upright for his age. He has thinning whitish gray hair, short and tousled, alongside a wispy mustache. He often wears clothes in white, gray, or beige, usually dressed casually.
Personality
In his youth, Wen Li was strong and independent, and at a surface level appeared somewhat uncaring, impulsive and even cocky. He often believed he did not need to rely on the help of others and rather it was the opposite. He was also quite impressionable. For most of his life, he grew up without his mother, which led to his almost seemingly lack of empathy. Nonetheless, deep down, he is a caring and kind soul.
However, as he aged, he appears somewhat cynical and apathetic, even doddering sometimes. Other times, he appears to be a genial old man, jocular and amusing. To many, his actions come off as eccentric and unpredictable. He rarely, however, becomes angered or frustrated and keeps it contained.
Background
Wen Li was born to Shen and Sunshine Li in a private hospital in northern Hala. After being fed up by Sunshine's antics and abusiveness, in 255 TP, Shen and Li boarded a ferry to Thales, where Shen acquired a job as a textile merchant in Port City.
However, in 268 TP, Shen became increasingly sick. Li's rather protective and caring side emerged, and he did all he could for his father. Li was easily exhausted, working countless hours as a taxi driver to support them. The time came where his father recovered and Shen, seeing Li as a better person, told him to live his own life.
Eventually losing his taxi job, Li gained a more resilient attitude within his few months unemployed and became determined to follow through with acquiring a stable job. He soon found it too, when he met Gabriel Alchemilia after one of his campaign rallies. Impressed with his attitude and determination, Gabriel hired him immediately.
Li and Gabriel soon became very close friends, a new experience for him — friendship. Li quickly became one of Gabriel's most trusted allies and executives. Li spent many years working for Gabriel. But Li, disgusted by basic human rights violations he had discovered going on, quit after Gabriel refused to do anything about it, noting they were doing a "fine job."
However, Li was also inspired. He decided to enroll at the Silivian Institute of Biology to pursue a degree in botany, something he was fascinated by in his earlier years. This was where he met Yu Li, who would eventually become his wife. They studied together and, for the first legitimate time in Li's life, he felt love. After the two graduated, they married and Yu convinced Li to open a plant shop — Plant Empire.
They began traveling the world as much as they could in their free time. Li experienced many diverse cultures across Euclid and, in turn, was affected by them. They shaped his view of the world from a twisted place to something full of beauty.
Li also became rather generous and trusting, in addition to gaining a "kindly older man" demeanor.
In Li's later life, he became more involved with his aging father. Li, too, was aging, and Shen suggested he hire Da Chang, the son of two of Shen's good friends. Da became very trusted and lifted some of a burden from Li, to which Li rewarded him greatly for. Shen once again became sickly and frail, which halted Yu and Li's travels. They focused more on working at Plant Empire, where they (and an ill Shen) eventually moved into, and started breeding more varieties of flowers.
Role in Series
Trivia
- He is known to play the harmonica.
- Wen Li has a coin collection he stores in his basement.
- Wen Li owns a prized fern he named Ferniculus "Ferny" Fernderson. It is a medium-sized plant in a maroon terracotta flowerpot, filled with dirt he collected from Aiola. Every morning before he eats breakfast, he waters it.
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