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robininthelabyrinth · 3 years

Note

Prompt 1) NMJ is the son of the concubine, NHS is the son of the legal wife, who had difficulty conceiving because of an old night hunting injury, and picked out a concubine for her husband who was big and strong and healthy as on ox - the strength got passed on, her more even temperament didn't. The legal wife conceived later, with much difficulty and they weren't entirely sure NHS would live at first

ao3

“Are you well?” Nie Mingjue asked Jin Guangyao, his voice stiff, and Jin Guangyao looked at him sidelong, surprised by the question, as well as the fact that Nie Mingjue was talking to him at all.

Normally, he would assume that Nie Mingjue was doing it because Lan Xichen was encouraging him to get along with Jin Guangyao again, but Lan Xichen was in the Cloud Recesses, had been in the Cloud Recesses for quite some time. Officially, he was helping oversee the rebuilding; unofficially he was caring for his brother, who had officially entered seclusion and unofficially was healing from a punishment so grievously terrible that Jin Guangyao was reminded all over again why one could not trust the righteous facades of the wealthy and powerful Great Sects.

Not that he needed much reminding, here in Jinlin Tower…

At any rate, Lan Xichen couldn’t be the reason Nie Mingjue was asking Jin Guangyao about his well-being, and that meant that his stern, grim-faced oldest sworn brother was doing it on his own, for reasons of his own.

Naturally, Jin Guangyao mistrusted that even more.

“Of course, da-ge,” he said with a practiced smile. “Is there a problem?”

“No,” Nie Mingjue said, somehow, impossibly, even stiffer than before. “No, I just – I meant – with Jin Zixuan’s death. It must have made it – hard. Here. For you.”

That was a staggeringly perceptive insight, and the fact that it came from Nie Mingjue, who thought ignoring rumors until they went away was a valid strategy, was something of an uncomfortable surprise. Even Lan Xichen hadn’t really thought of Jin Guangyao in the aftermath of Jin Zixuan’s death and the ensuing calamity, with the Nightless City and Wei Wuxian’s final downfall and everything with Lan Wangji taking away his attention; at best, he’d penned a careless letter belatedly expressing that he was sad that Jin Guangyao hadn’t had more of an opportunity to get to know Jin Zixuan better before his untimely demise.

Not even Su She had said anything, taking Jin Zixuan’s death as an unmitigated good – an obstacle out of their way, and nothing more. Easy enough for him to think as sect leader of his own sect, however small.

Not so easy for Jin Guangyao.

Not so easy when Madame Jin’s dislike of him had turned to full-blown maddened hatred, when his father looked at him like filth on his shoe, when they wouldn’t let him anywhere near Jin Ling as if his mere touch were some sort of toxic poison…

“…thank you,” he said cautiously. “I’ve been doing fine.”

Nie Mingjue jerked his head in a nod. “Avoid the sect elders for a time,” he said, and when Jin Guangyao looked at him, he was staring straight ahead, not looking at him at all. “Be careful with what you eat and drink. Some people don’t like to take chances.”

Was Nie Mingjue – Nie Mingjue – warning him about a possible assassination attempt? The man who had barely consented to using spies during wartime, who thought politics could be conducted through above-board dealings, who thought bribery and blackmail were unacceptable crimes? Him?

The world had truly turned upside down.

“I’ll be careful,” Jin Guangyao said, and found to his embarrassment that his tone had unconsciously softened, revealing the sudden fondness he was feeling for no good reason. He could rationalize it as a deliberate move, because allowing Nie Mingjue to do him a favor and sounding touched about it was a good way to get closer to him, to get back through those iron defenses of his. The problem was that it wasn’t a stratagem, not really, and that was dangerous.

Nie Mingjue nodded again, and Jin Guangyao expected him to move on – he and Nie Mingjue might be sworn brothers, but they didn’t chat – but he didn’t. He lingered, instead, clearly wanting to say something, something he was chewing over and not quite able to spit out.

Unusual, for someone who normally prided himself on being straightforward and direct.

“Is there something else?” Jin Guangyao eventually asked when Nie Mingjue didn’t seem to be actually making any progress towards saying anything.

Nie Mingjue grimaced and took a step – off to the side, to a corner of the path that was a little more secluded than most. Interestingly, he didn’t make the amateur mistake of going for one of the obviously secluded alcoves, which of course had all sorts of hiding-holes for eavesdroppers, but rather ended up in one of the few areas where the architecture created a natural dead space for sound.

Intrigued, Jin Guangyao followed him there.

Once they were there, Nie Mingjue still looked awkward – he was still refusing to look directly at Jin Guangyao, as if they wouldn’t be talking in hushed tones in a secluded corner if he didn’t admit that that was what they were doing – but finally said, “Would it help or hurt if I said anything?”

Jin Guangyao frowned a little, not following. “Said anything?”

“About the inheritance,” Nie Mingjue said, and Jin Guangyao’s eyes widened. “You’re the only recognized son left; you ought to be named heir until Jin Ling is full grown. But that doesn’t mean people will let that happen so easily.”

Jin Guangyao would have been less surprised if Wen Ruohan had spontaneously resurrected himself from the dead and performed a brothel fan dance on the front lawn of Jinlin Tower.

It had not even remotely entered his calculations that Nie Mingjue would be anything but an obstacle to his ambitions for power over the Lanling Jin sect – at best, he had hoped only that Nie Mingjue would be convinced that Jin Zixuan’s death was wholly Wei Wuxian’s fault and not find some way to blame Jin Guangyao for it, and that he wouldn’t immediately suspect that Jin Guangyao of scheming to kill Jin Ling and take the whole thing for himself.

He’d never dreamed that Nie Mingjue might think that he deserved it.

“I’ll support you, of course,” Nie Mingjue said, as if it were obvious, when it was the least obvious thing that had ever happened in Jin Guangyao’s life. “But I’m not actually any good at this sort of thing, you know – playing politics with the internal affairs of other sects. I don’t want to make things worse for you just because I don’t know what the right approach is, especially not here.”

Jin Guangyao stared at him.

Nie Mingjue, not hearing a response, glanced at him and scowled. Lowering his voice still more, he said, “Think on it carefully. Sect Leader Jin hates me personally, but my Nie sect isn’t nothing, not even in Lanling. It’s still more so after the war, after all those battles I won to save the Jin sect’s rotten – that is, after everything I did to help. Even if your father doesn’t like it, he still has to give my sect face, and his sect elders know it. You’re a war hero, and my sworn brother; if a public stand on my part would help make things easier for you…”

“I’ll think on it carefully,” Jin Guangyao assured him, his mind already racing over the possibilities. Nie Mingjue underestimated himself – he wasn’t just a war hero, he was the war hero, the righteous and unyielding war god that had won an impossible war for the rest of them. He was Jin Guangshan’s chief rival for the position of Chief Cultivator and he wasn’t even trying to get the position; he probably wanted nothing more than to go home to Qinghe and sleep for three months and yet practically every single sect leader that Jin Guangshan felt out on the subject invariably dropped his name as the possible alternative. Assuming he was serious, and Nie Mingjue was always serious, his public support would make it extremely tricky for Jin Guangshan to refuse to name Jin Guangyao as the official heir, even if he tried to claim that this was a private matter. The rest of the sect would force him to do it, even against his will.

Moreover, Lan Xichen would follow Nie Mingjue’s lead, or at least could be easily encouraged into doing so. He was so distracted with his brother, if Jin Guangyao went to him and pointed out that Nie Mingjue thought it was a good idea to stand behind him…no, he wouldn’t even need to do that. Everyone knew how much better his relationship with Lan Xichen was in comparison to Nie Mingjue; if Nie Mingjue stood behind him, everyone would assume that Lan Xichen did as well, and then he would have two of the remaining Great Sects backing his right to inherit – even if only in the interim – the seat of power for Lanling Jin, as the only recognized son…

Except, of course, Jin Guangshan had already accounted for that.

Jin Guangyao’s eyes flickered. Perhaps there was a way to test Nie Mingjue’s sincerity.

“There is one issue,” he said, and Nie Mingjue turned his head to look at him directly. “My father has – decided to bring home another son.”

Nie Mingjue stared at him. “Another son?”

“From a minor noble family of commoners –”

“He brought one home now?” Nie Mingjue said, and he sounded angry. He always sounded angry, but this time he sounded angry on Jin Guangyao’s behalf, something he hadn’t been since Langya, since Qinghe, and it thrilled Jin Guangyao’s heart to hear it. He’d always secretly enjoyed having someone as physically and politically strong as Nie Mingjue in his corner, the power of it going to his head; it was even more so now, when he was finally in a position where he could really use it. “That’s a deliberate insult to you, and for what? Some untried boy…”

One who isn’t the son of a prostitute, Jin Guangyao thought, but of course Nie Mingjue wouldn’t think about it that way. He never had, not from the beginning.

“Father is of course within his rights to bring home whoever he wishes, for the best interest of the sect,” he said diplomatically, and Nie Mingjue huffed and rolled his eyes. “Da-ge…”

“It doesn’t change anything,” Nie Mingjue said curtly. “Think on it, and tell me what you want me to do.”

With that he turned away and strode off towards the main hall, a scowl firmly on his face.

Jin Guangyao watched him go, pleased – Nie Mingjue was really too easy to manipulate, if you knew him well enough. He’d keep quiet during the opening ceremony of the conference, but if he was really sincere about standing up for Jin Guangyao’s right to inherit, there would be no way he’d be able to refrain from expressing his views to Jin Guangshan at some point later that evening.

Sure enough, Nie Mingjue seethed throughout most of the complex and beautiful ceremony Jin Guangyao had arranged to show off Lanling Jin’s wealth and strength and taste – all wasted on him, naturally, so Jin Guangyao didn’t take any offense – and through dinner as well, and afterwards found a reason to make his way over to Jin Guangshan. After a few words, they both retreated to one of the receiving rooms.

Jin Guangyao made his excuses very shortly thereafter and slipped away: the receiving rooms, at least, were not dead spaces, and he knew all the ways to listen in there.

By the time he arrived, they were already arguing.

“ – what business of yours?” Jin Guangshan was snarling. “These are my private family matters!”

“He is my sworn brother,” Nie Mingjue said in return, his voice stiff as always. It was interesting to Jin Guangyao that he still didn’t seem happy about admitting that fact; he was still resentful of Jin Guangyao, still suspicious, and yet he supported him regardless, just because he thought it was his right. Ah, the foolishness of good people! “When you refuse to give him face, that becomes my business.”

Jin Guangshan spat, audibly. Jin Guangyao, still carefully moving into a position where he could see as well as hear, hoped he’d aimed it at the floor and not at Nie Mingjue’s face.

“Oh, I’m sure it is,” Jin Guangshan said. “I suppose I really shouldn’t be so surprised to find you supporting him, should I?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Nie Mingjue demanded, and Jin Guangyao wondered the same.

“You know exactly what I mean,” Jin Guangshan said. Jin Guangyao had never heard his father sound so cruel – and he had quite a bit to compare it to. “They do say like calls to like, don’t they?”

Jin Guangyao had just finally gotten into view position, which meant he was just in time to see all the blood drain out of Nie Mingjue’s face as if he’d just been stabbed.

“You may have won some merit,” Jin Guangshan said, and he was smirking now. “But they do say blood always tells – or did you think that people would forget that it’s your brother that’s the true-born son, and you merely a concubine’s get?”

He was what?

Nie Mingjue was –

It was impossible. Surely, it was impossible.

And yet Nie Mingjue was not denying Jin Guangshan’s words, was not getting angry at the slander, was standing there stiff-backed and grim-faced –

“I still remember how disappointed your father was when his beautiful, beloved, delicate wife couldn’t get a pregnancy to last the term,” Jin Guangshan said, picking up one of the jars of wine and taking a swig. “He didn’t want to take a concubine at all, thought it’d be disrespectful to his wife, but what could he do? He was the sole heir, with an obligation to continue his lineage…they bought your mother for the breeding, like bringing in a cow for the farmyard bull.”

He laughed.

Nie Mingjue said nothing.

“Healthy, I think he said about her. Healthy and big, good hips for bearing children, good tits to nurse them – that was all he cared about, squeezing a few sons out of her, and she didn’t even manage that. Ran away after the first one, didn’t she? You ever figure out where she went, whether she ended up married to some dumb farmer as illiterate as her, or else lying on her back in a brothel? Dead in a beggar’s grave somewhere, perhaps?”

Nie Mingjue said nothing.

“No, it’s no surprise: of course you’d back the little son of a whore for the position of rightful heir, as if letting him take it would help cover up for the way you stole your own brother’s –”

“Watch your words,” Nie Mingjue said, his heavy voice slicing through the air like a saber.

“Still pretending it wasn’t theft, then?” Jin Guangshan laughed again, pacing the room back and forth, prowling like some sort of beast. “You were supposed to step down when he was ready – you had to swear never to have children, never to marry, all so you could warm the sect leader seat until he was grown up and ready to take it himself. But a weakling wastrel like that, he’s never going to be ready, is he? Very clever of you. I bet your sect elders hadn’t thought of you getting around it like that.”

“You dare –”

“Oh, I dare! And I’d dare more, if you think you can push me around!” Jin Guangshan bared his teeth. “Let me tell you now, Sect Leader Nie, if you dare make a public statement of support for Guangyao, I’ll remind the whole world that you’re no better than him, that you ought to be one of the Nie sect’s servants, not its sect leader –”

“Go ahead.”

Jin Guangshan stopped.

“Go ahead,” Nie Mingjue said again, stepping forward, and Jin Guangyao had never actually seen him purposefully use his height against someone, wield it like a weapon to remind the other party which of them was the more terrifying. “I’ve already had half a dozen public arguments with Huaisang about the fact that he needs to take the role of Sect Leader; everyone in my sect knows that he’s the one who keeps refusing. Do you really think everyone is like you? Scrabbling for every scrap of power you can get, like a rat in the rubbish bin?”

Jin Guangshan took an involuntary step backwards as Nie Mingjue continued to advance.

“When there are those who speak against you, you must do so well that they have no choice but to shut their mouths,” Nie Mingjue said, and it was the very same words he had spoken in encouragement to Jin Guangyao, all those years ago when they had first met. At the time, and thereafter, Jin Guangyao had thought him naïve, of not knowing of which he spoke. “Tell me, Sect Leader Jin, if you go out and spew your poison to your sycophants, do you really think any but the most loyal and brainless will open their mouths to condemn me now? Now, when I’ve just won the cultivation world a war, when I saved Lanling Jin a dozen times or more? Do you really think people will remember my mother instead of my saber?”

“You’d be amazed what people remember,” Jin Guangshan said, even if his voice was weaker, more desperate than it had been before. Less mighty and more pathetic than before, as if Jin Guangyao were suddenly seeing him in a brand new light: seeing him as what he was, as a man who would never looked beyond a person’s birth, no matter what their merits. “In the end, public arguments or not, you were the one who raised Nie Huaisang, now a good-for-nothing, a waste, and you sit in his throne, managing his Nie sect. People will remember that! Your sect will still lose face, be dishonored!”

“Fine. Then I’ll just kill you,” Nie Mingjue said, and Jin Guangshan gaped at him. “Why not? You’re right. To protect my brother’s birthright, I vowed never to have children, never to marry; the only ambitions in my life were to allow Huaisang to live well as he grew older and to avenge my father, and I’ve accomplished both. Even if they execute me for your murder, what’s it to me? What will I have lost?”

Jin Guangshan’s mouth moved open and closed, mute in his shock, and Jin Guangyao couldn’t blame him.

Nie Mingjue’s lips twisted into a sneer of his own.

“For once in your life, Sect Leader Jin, just do the right thing,” he said, sounding tired, and Jin Guangyao felt something loosen inside of him that had gone inexplicably frozen and pained at the idea of Nie Mingjue breaking all those morals and principles he always seemed to hold so dear.

It was strange. Not a day earlier, Jin Guangyao would have sworn that he would’ve liked nothing more than to see Nie Mingjue pushed too far, forced down into the muck and mud that the rest of them trudged their way through, and now that he saw a hint of it, he’d never wanted anything less.

“Name Meng Yao your heir until Jin Ling is grown,” Nie Mingjue continued. “Reap the benefits of the alliance he brings with him and have us all honor you as an elder, if that’s what you want. But playing games like this…I’d say it’s beneath you, but I’d need a shovel to get that deep. So don’t think about it. Just do it. Or I’ll make you.”

He left, Jin Guangshan still gaping after him. It wasn’t long before he finally started moving, throwing around expensive teacups and furnishings and shouting for servants to bring him a drink and a whore, even though it was early; Jin Guangyao returned to the party, knowing there would be nothing more for him to learn, not when his father was in a mood like that.

Later that night, when the party was over and all cleaned up, he went to the quarters assigned for their guests from the Nie sect and was unsurprised to see a light still lit within the one assigned to the sect leader.

He knocked, and a familiar voice beckoned him to enter.

Nie Mingjue was dressed in a sleeping robe, but he was at his desk, writing a letter; he’d clearly been unable to sleep. He looked up when Jin Guangyao entered.

“What?” he asked, short and sharp and rude as always.

These days, Jin Guangyao usually planned out his encounters with Nie Mingjue in advance, hoping to minimize awkwardness and achieve his goals without too much of a scolding. He’d done that at the very beginning of knowing him, only to rapidly give up during his time at Qinghe – Nie Mingjue was both predictable and yet somehow an utter mystery, and it was easier to just go with the flow, adapt to the circumstances, than it was to plan in advance. Only after he’d left did he start planning once again.

He wasn’t planning now.

“Your mother,” he said, and Nie Mingjue barked a laugh, reaching up with a hand to rub at his eyes.

“Did your father tell you?” he asked. “Or did you just listen in?”

Jin Guangyao shrugged, and Nie Mingjue for once did not seem inclined to demand an answer.

“Is it true?” he asked instead, even though he already knew. “That she was…”

Like mine.

Not exactly like, of course. Jin Guangshan wouldn’t have hesitated to call Nie Mingjue the son of a whore directly if he thought he could get away with claiming it was merely fact, and had managed to imply as much nonetheless. Jin Guangyao’s mother’s shame could never be washed away, not in his lifetime; Nie Mingjue’s birth, being merely low, was not the same.

And yet.

“Oh, it’s true,” Nie Mingjue said mirthlessly. “Right down to the fact that they all but bought her based on how fertile she looked, for all that my father later pretended it wasn’t that, and the fact that she ran away.”

Jin Guangyao blinked. If he was playacting, he might have bitten his lip, averted his eyes, and he still considered doing it, but for the moment he was still feeling too off-balance to really commit to it. “Is she – still alive?”

Nie Mingjue shrugged.

“Have you looked for her?”

“I’ve been sect leader for over a decade,” he said, which wasn’t a denial. “If she wanted to find me, she knows where I am.”

That was a good point, Jin Guangyao supposed.

“Was it hard?” he asked, and Nie Mingjue frowned, clearly not understanding the question. “For you, when it was you. Was it hard to convince them to let you inherit?”

Nie Mingjue’s eyes slid half-shut in pained memory. “Yes.”

Jin Guangyao nodded, and went to sit down next to Nie Mingjue, who allowed it, returning to his work. He didn’t say anything.

It was rather atypical for Jin Guangyao – he was always thinking of something to say, when it came to Nie Mingjue, trying to bridge the gap between them with clever words. Perhaps it was only that the gap had shrunk, or had never been as large as he had thought.

After a while, Nie Mingjue said, “You know I wish you were better than you are,” and Jin Guangyao looked at him sidelong. “But in the end, you’re my brother. Isn’t that what matters?”

“Yes,” Jin Guangyao said, and there was that uncalled-for fondness again. “Yes, I suppose it is.”

#mdzs #jin guangyao #nie mingjue #jin guangshan #my fic #my fics #alternative backstory #dead spaces #jessaramine

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meltingheartsandcores · 3 years

Text

This is just something that came from a different story I’m writing, so, it’s just a one shot. And it’s not really editted (sorry).

This is A/B/O, with Omega wwx and Alpha lwj, but honestly it doesn’t really show up much, like it’s not a focal point of the story for the most part, it’s just kind of, there. There’s minor NieLan, and past wangxian with hopeful future wangxian (hopeful future IMO), and it’s modern non cultivation!

Other than that, enjoy? And if you have questions feel free to hop into my inbox.

It had been years.

Five, to be exact.

Wei Wuxian wouldn't lie and say Lan Wangji never entered his mind, he did almost constantly. But he had long accepted he would never see the Alpha again. Lan Qiren had made it rather clear he was to never contact Lan Wangji again.

That hadn't been a pleasant conversation. Well. Argument.

For once Wei Wuxian was glad he was no longer in contact with the Jiangs, even if it wasn’t for long, he'd hate for them to have been involved. He's not entirely sure who's side Madam Yu would've been on, but he hoped she would've been on his. Although, if she was, he's not entirely confident Lan Qiren would still be walking around. Lan Qiren might be a hard ass, but he had nothing on Madam Yu.

He should write Nie Huaisang. See how the Jiang's are doing.

"Are you alright?"

Wei Wuxian blinks, brought back to the present, silently filing the idea to write Nie Huaisang for later, and looks up at Lan Xichen. Who he had just run into. Literally.

Wei Wuxian ignores the hand and stands on his own, "Perfectly. Just distracted. Sorry to bother you." Wei Wuxian says, nodding and turning, deciding he could get A-Yuan's candy later, after the milk. He had made it a few steps before Lan Xichen grabbed his arm. Wei Wuxian tenses, snapping around with a glare on his face before he registers that Lan Xichen isn't going to attack him. Not physically at least. So he lets the glare fall. "Sorry."

Lan Xichen drops his hand, "No, I should not have grabbed you. I apologize." An apology from a Lan. Maybe he died.

A-Yuan would be heartbroken. A-Yu probably doesn't know what Death is and probably wouldn't understand for a few years.

Lan Xichen was talking. Wei Wuxian should be listening, not thinking of his death. Lan Xichen smiles, as he normally does, "You were not listening."

"Sorry. My brain drifts, it pissed your uncle off to end, remember?" Wei Wuxian says, shrugging.

Lan Xichen nods, "Uncle seemed to anger easily around you, yes. I was wondering if you had the time, we could talk. Perhaps over tea?"

He can't ask for alcohol instead. For one, Lans don't drink. For two, he has to pick A-Yu and A-Yuan up in half an hour.

"I have a half hour, I guess we could finish up shopping and go to the Starbucks down the block." Lan Xichen's eyes tighten at the mention of Starbucks, which makes Wei Wuxian remember the heavily disturbed and deer-in-headlight look Lan Wangji had when Wei Wuxian dragged him there. Repeatedly.

Lan Wangji never seemed to get used to Starbucks.

None of the Lans seem to like it either.

Lan Xichen nods though, so Wei Wuxian does a U-turn to grab the candy he promised A-Yuan and then made a bee-line for the two other things he was missing. He loses Lan Xichen at some point, but when he gets to the check out, Lan Xichen is waiting by the door with a bag.

Wei Wuxian smiles at the Cashier, Mingyu, who seemed slightly concerned for him. But Wei Wuxian waves off the concern, even when Mingyu decides to ask, "Is he a friend or should I call security?"

Wei Wuxian considers this, Lan Xichen isn't a friend, but security isn't necessary. Wei Wuxian grins when he comes to a response, that's both honest and fun, "He's Daiyu's uncle." Wei Wuxian informs, finishing with his payment and taking his items. "See you in a week Mingyu!" Wei Wuxian calls as the other man is clearly trying to figure out how he hasn't met this uncle until now.

"A friend?" Lan Xichen asks as they walk down the road.

"Eh, more I'm a regular." Wei Wuxian shrugs. He only talks to Mingyu when he buys groceries. Not much other reason to talk to the teenager.

Especially since he tends to remind Wei Wuxian that, uh, he is only twenty-two.

That's not something he particularly likes to remember. Especially when he's on his way to pick up his kids. He looks older enough that none of the other parents comment on him being A-Yu and A-Yuan's brother, and none of them comment on the utter shame of having a child at seventeen. And presumably fourteen if A-Yuan was actually birthed from him. As he so often jokes, especially after A-Yuan learnt where babies came from.

A-Yuan thinks it's funny.

Wen Qing thinks it's stupid.

But it's meant to entertain the eight year old so it's not a problem.

"So you live around here." Lan Xichen comments, more to himself than to Wei Wuxian, and Wei Wuxian has to mentally curse himself. For five years, no Lan has known where he lived. No one from that life knew where he was except Nie Huaisang. And for all he can be a coward, Wei Wuxian knows he wouldn't have given away his location to anyone.

But he just confirmed to Lan Xichen that he lived in this town.

Fuck.

"What're you doing here?" Wei Wuxian asks, opening the door for Lan Xichen and gesturing for the man to enter the Starbucks. Lan Xichen gives him a tight smile and enters, clearly not liking being inside the store.

Tough. Wei Wuxian doesn't want to be having this conversation, neither of them get to be comfortable. Wei Wuxian follows Lan Xichen in, walking up to the register and ordering a drink with a smile before turning to Lan Xichen for his order. Which he gives with a tense smile. The barista nods, repeats the order back and then Lan Xichen pays, because this was his idea and Wei Wuxian would much rather be at home right now.

They amble over to a table to wait for their drinks to be made. Well. Lan Xichen got his at the till since it was just a Green Tea, but they have to wait for Wei Wuxian's. Might as well get this chat over with.

"The Nie have a lakehouse a mile out of town." Oh right. Oh fuck. "Mingjue and I are having a little vacation." Lan Xichen says in response to his earlier question.

"And you came to get some groceries."

"Just a little. Mingjue will be back for the rest." Lan Xichen winces when he sips at his tea, clearly not liking it. He sets his cup aside, "You know, Huaisang seemed very against us going to this partical vacation house."

Oh for fucks sake. "Huaisang's specialty isn't subtly." Wei Wuxian says with a shrug, then stands and gets his drink when the barista calls out his name.

Lan Xichen waits for him to sit back down. "No, it isn't. Might I ask, why Huaisang knows where you are when no one else does?"

"I don't like the Jin. I don't want to burden the Jiang. The Lan want nothing to do with me." Wei Wuxian shrugs, "Nie Huaisang is the only friend I have left." Outside of the friends he now lives with. Wei Wuxian sips at his flat white.

Lan Xichen's brows twitch in a furrow before smoothing out, "What do you mean we want nothing to do with you.

Wei Wuxian raises an eyebrow, "Was there a part of Lan Qiren's order that was unclear?"

Wei Wuxian's response only seems to confuse him further. "I believe, there has been some miscommunication." Lan Xichen suggests politely.

"Not really." Wei Wuxian refutes. "Lan Qiren told me to get the fuck out and never contact any of you again. Not much room for miscommunication."

"He said what?" Lan Xichen asks, sounding light and a little confused. But Wei Wuxian had spent enough time around Lan Wangji, and hence Lan Xichen since Lan Xichen was Lan Wangji's favoured company, to know he was getting very pissed off.

Huh.

Wei Wuxian shrugs, too little too late, in his opinion. It's been five years. "It was shortly after I left the Jiang, I went to stay with Lan- Wangji." Wei Wuxian catches himself before using the familiar address. Lan Xichen seemed to catch the slip up too. "Just for the night. The departure went a little more explosively than I meant for it to, I came to spend the night. Lan Qiren told me to leave and never return, that Lan Wangji wanted nothing more to do with me. Not to contact anyone in the family. Obviously I argued, but I had already argued with Madam Yu and Uncle Jiang that night, so, he won. I left. And then a week later he sent me two hundred thousand Yuan." That wasn't a pleasant night to remember. It wasn't a pleasant week. He found out he was pregnant, then the Wen shit happened, and he was moving across the country with Wen Ning and his family. Wei Wuxian shrugs again, drinking his flat white.

Lan Xichen's brow furrows slowly, and he shakes his head, "I'm sorry, Uncle told us nothing about this. All Wangji and I have known is that you left the Jiang and disappeared. Wangji certainly didn't say anything about not wanting your company anymore." Lan Xichen seemed offended at the very idea.

Oh.

Huh.

Lan Wangji doesn't hate him.

Oh fuck.

Lan Wangji doesn't hate him.

But he probably will. When he tells him about A-Yu.

Fuck.

"Is everything okay?" Lan Xichen asks, making clear that Wei Wuxian's panic is clear on his face.

"Um." Wei Wuxian swallows, twisting the paper cup in his hands, "In theory. If, uh, when I left, I had been uh," No. Nope. He can't think of a good way to say this. He checks the time. "Uh, do you have twenty minutes?"

"I'm supposed to meet with Mingjue in ten."

"Great. Uh. Meet me at the park with the giant octopus sculpture in fifteen, bring Da ge, I need to drop my groceries off at my house." Wei Wuxian doesn't wait for Lan Xichen to agree, picking up his groceries and hurrying out.

When he gets home, he dumps the groceries on the counter, giving Wen Qing a quick, "Lan Xichen's in town and he's metting A-Yu and A-Yuan, see you in fiften minutes. Thanks bye!" before running back out, not responding to her shout of 'what' that followed.

When he gets to the octopus sculpture, he doesn't have to wait long fo Lan Xichen and Nie Mingjue to show up, thankfully. He bounces over to them, the nervous energy coursing through him a little too much to keep still. "Hi Dage."

"Wuxian." Nie Mingjue greets, as if Wei Wuxian hasn't been off the grid for five years and was still popping into his house every other weekend to do weird shit with Nie Huaisang.

Nice to know somethings don't change.

"What is it you wanted to show us?" Lan Xichen asks politely.

"Um, this way." Wei Wuxian takes them to the school, which was only a few minutes away.

"A school." Nie Mingjue deadpans.

Wei Wuxian looks at the other parents waiting, a few of them looking back at the group with furrowed brows. One of the mothers makes a very harsh 'come here' gesture, so Wei Wuxian turns to Nie Mingjue and Lan Xichen, "Uh, I'll be right back. Don't move." He was clearly confusing the pair, but they nod so he rushes off to Mrs. Yang.

"Is that Daiyu's father? Other father?" Mrs. Yang demands, almost glaring at Lan Xichen.

"It's his older brother." Wei Wuxian corrects with a tight smile. "Please don't go yell at him."

"Oh, his family decides it's okay for you to raise a child for five years on your own, and I shouldn't yell?" Mrs. Yang demands, already gearing up to go.

"Uh, I'm, about to tell him Daiyu exists."

Mrs. Yang blinks, clearly taken aback. "Wei Wuxian." Wei Wuxian flinches at her tone, oh no. He's in trouble. "Did you not tell the Alpha family you were pregnant?"

"In my defence," because he needed one if he wanted to survive, "their uncle had already told me their family wanted nothing to do with me before he found out I had gotten pregnant. I don't think that opinion would've been changed in my favour. Given we were seventeen, and unmated."

Mrs. Yang hmphs, but nods. "Fine. But if he seems anything less than overjoyed, I'll be having words."

"Yes Mrs. Yang. Thank you." Wei Wuxian says, nodding. He meant it. Mrs. Yang was one of the more supportive parents. Like Granny Wen she had more or less started treating him like family.

It probably helped that her eldest was only two years younger than Wei Wuxian.

Wei Wuxian smiles and then hurries back to Lan Xichen and Nie Mingjue as the elder grades started to be let out.

"I'm sorry, do you babysit?" Lan Xichen asks, clearly very confused. Nie Mingjue doesn't seem to be much better.

"Uh. Sometimes." Wei Wuxian shrugs, "Not today." His answer only served further confusion, but he wasn't paying much attention to the pair. Instead to his incoming missile.

"Xian-gege!" Wen Yuan yells, and Wei Wuxian picks up the eight-year old as the boy had launched himself at Wei Wuxian.

"A-Yuan! My, I think you've grown!"

Wen Yuan pouts, "You saw me this morning gege! I haven't grown at all!"

Wei Wuxian shakes his head, "Hmm, nope! You've grown a full inch! I know it."

"No! A-Yuan hasn't grown at all!" Wen Yuan counters, pouting more deeply. Ah, not in the mood to be teased today. Okay.

"Ah, ah yes. A-Yuan is correct." Wei Wuxian agrees, and puts A-Yuan down. "A-Yuan, this is Lan Xichen and Nie Mingjue. They're old friends." Wei Wuxian introduces.

Wen Yuan was half through a bored wave when he actually looked at Nie Mingjue and his eyes utterly lit up. "You're so tall!"

Nie Mingjue barely blinked, very used to this reaction, but he seemed delighted at A-Yuan's very prescence. "Yes." Seeing as A-Yuan was practically vibrating, Wei Wuxian gently encourages him, and really that was all that was necessary before A-Yuan was attached to Nie Mingjue's leg and asking a million questions a minute.

Nie Mingjue seemed amused, and politely answered every question he caught.

With A-Yuan distracted, Wei Wuxian looks around the schoolyard for his other charge. Normally Daiyu would be attached to his leg by now. He finally spots her hiding by a tree, or, behind a tree. Her eyes widen when they meet his, and he waves her over. She hesitates, but eventually decides to come over. She walks, and then runs the last little bit, entirely hiding behind Wei Wuxian's legs, peeking a little to look at Lan Xichen and Nie Mingjue.

Lan Xichen had frozen.

As expected, given Daiyu's golden eyes.

"Daiyu, this is Nie Mingjue and Lan Xichen. Lan Xichen is your Bobo." Daiyu seemed very doubtful of that, making almost the exact same expression Lan Wangji did when Wei Wuxian had tried to convince him necromancy was a perfectly viable career path. Wei Wuxian would like to be offended. "I'm telling the truth."

"I thought Baba's family didn't want anything to do with us." Daiyu counters, doubt clear.

Ai. Who told her that? They didn't but still. "Who told you that?"

"Qing-jie."

...Ok. Wei Wuxian wasn't going to yell at Wen Qing for telling Daiyu that. Even if he wanted to. He was going to call her a liar.

"Well, she's wrong." Wei Wuxian crouches, turning to pick Daiyu up before standing straight. "It's complicated, and something I'll talk to you about in private. But Lan Xichen hasn't been able to be around until now."

Daiyu narrows her eyes but shrugs, "Fine." She didn't sound fine. But Wei Wuxian was not about to argue with a five year old. Not in public.

"Ok. Lan Xichen, Nie Mingjue, this is Wei Daiyu."

"Hi."

"Hello."

Daiyu looks at Wei Wuxian before responding, "Hello."

Well. This was awkward. And Lan Xichen looked like he was about to faint. "Why don't we go to the park?" A-Yuan seemed all for that idea. A-Yu looked like she'd rather not but when Wei Wuxian put her down she ran with A-Yuan toward the park. Wei Wuxian lead the adults in following after them.

While the kids played at the Octopus park, Wei Wuxian and Lan Xichen sat down at a bench, as Wen Yuan had dragged Nie Mingjue into their game.

"You were pregnant."

Wei Wuxian nods. "Lan Qiren didn't know. I, didn't know, until a week after that argument." Wei Wuxian shrugs, "I took Lan Qiren's words to heart, and didn't contact Lan Zhan about her."

"But you told Huaisang." Lan Xichen states.

Wei Wuxian blinks, "Huaisang doesn't know. I only talk to Huaisang for updates on the Jiang." And other things, but, mostly the Jiang. Once or twice Lan Wangji, but not all that often. He probably wouldn't take it well if Nie Huaisang sent back that Lan Wangji had gotten married.

"You, didn't tell anyone?"

"Nope. You're the first person outside of this town that knows." Wei Wuxian shrugs, and Lan Xichen just, stops. Wei Wuxian worries he's broken him, but soon enough Lan Xichen shakes his head.

"I can't- Apologies, this is a lot to process."

"How do you think Lan Zhan will react?" He's expecting anger. That's what some of the other omegan parents tell him to expect, whenever he considers sending Lan Wangji a message about Daiyu. No Alpha ever takes a pup being kept from them well. That's what they always say.

Lan Xichen's eyes widen, then he winces slightly, "I imagine, you are the not the one to worry about Wangji's reaction." Eh? "I'm sure he'll be happy. Saddened to have missed her first few years, but happy none the less."

Wei Wuxian opens and closes his mouth, trying to figure how to phrase his question before giving up and just asking, "Is he with anyone?"

Lan Xichen blinks and turns to look at Wei Wuxian, confused for a moment before understand dawns and he shakes his head slightly, "No. Uncle has tried for arrangements, but Wangji refuses them all. but I'm certain if you contact him, he'll be happy to see you." (Lan Xichen does not mention that he's rather confident Lan Wangji will immediately run to Wei Wuxian's side and help in raising Daiyu if Wei Wuxian even hints that that is what he wants. That seems a little much for right now.)

Wei Wuxian nods, not entirely believing that, but not willing to argue. "Now I just have to get Daiyu to come around." He did not expect his daughter to be the stickler here. Then again, Wen Qing had made her opinion on Lan Qiren years ago and wasn't quiet about it.

"She's aware of what Uncle said?" Lan Xichen asks.

Wei Wuxian shakes his head, "Uh, my friend, Wen Qing, yeah, that Wen Qing, I'm living with her family, long story, anyways, Wen Qing knows, and she holds very unfavourable opinions about it and she's not quiet about them. So, even if Daiyu doesn't know the full story, Wen Qing has given her enough to go on that she's formed her own, unfavourable opinion." Wei Wuxian shrugs, he couldn't really argue against it. Up until half an hour ago, he was rather confident the Lan's hated him and wanted nothing to do with him.

Now he has to explain a five year misunderstanding to his daughter.

Fun.

“I have to tell Wangji what you just told me.” Lan Xichen states, clearly not looking forward to that conversation.

Wei Wuxian shrugs, “It’s Lan Zhan, he’ll make a displeased face and not talk for a week.” It wasn’t that big of deal. Lan Wangji doesn’t do grudges, not really. At least, he didn’t five years ago.

Lan Xichen’s face was pure pity, which Wei Wuxian didn’t understand but it was gone before Wei Wuxian could formulate a question. “Do you want us around or shall we leave you alone?”

Oh. Wei Wuxian hadn’t considered that. “Um, maybe leave us alone for tomorrow? I guess I can give you my number and, if A-Yu is agreeable you guys can hang around. If it won’t mess up your vacation.” Because, who wants to spend their vacation with their little brother’s ex and daughter?

“That would be wonderful.” Lan Xichen says, pulling out his own phone and letting Wei Wuxian type in his number. Wei Wuxian then texts himself so he’d have the number on his phone too. “We should be getting back, I believe Mingjue wanted to stop by the butcher and they close at five.”

“Yes, they do. Because he needs to eat supper and spend time with his kids.” He kne Changpu, he was nice. Stodgy, but nice.

Lan Xichen nods and stands up, walking over to the playing trio and speaking quietly to Mingjue, he bids goodbye to the children, before the pair start walking away, they wave goodbye to Wei Wuxian, which he returns, and then they disappear.

Then, Daiyu runs up to him, “A-Niang, does that mean A-Die doesn’t hate us? Will he come live with us? Will we see Xi-bo a lot? Are they going to live with us? Like Granny and Uncle Four?”

Fuck.

Upon returning to the cabin, Lan Xichen’s day wasn’t going any better. Nie Mingjue was cooking supper, so Lan Xichen was alone with the decision to call Lan Wangji about Wei Wuxian. Obviously, he would. How much to say though?

Wangji, as it turns out, would make that decision for him.

After exchanging greetings, Lan Xichen barely got out, “So I ran into Wei Wuxian today in the city near where Mingjue and I are vacationing.” Before the call was dropped. Lan Xichen blinked, staring at his phone where it said ‘Call Ended’, meaning Wangji hung up on him. Lan Wangji hung up without a word. Without letting Lan Xichen finish. He was never so rude. He normally at least made a sound to indicate a goodbye. Nie Mingjue laughed at him when Lan Xichen explained why he was so flabbergasted.

Lan Wangji showed up the next morning.

#Wei Wuxian #Lan Xichen #Nie Mingjue #A/B/O #wwx #lxc #nmj #cql #mdzs #Modern Au #my writing #my fics #Wei Daiyu #I forget the characters for her name but I have them written somewhere #She’s like #my Wangxian go to child for any fics Im writing where they have a child aside from lzs #I haven’t posted in forever #I don’t remember how I used to tag these #Five Year Misunderstanding

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lanwangjisnow · 3 years

Text

Melting Ice

Lan Wangji x reader ( Part 5)

The night at Mo mansion Wei Wuxian saw Hanguang- Jun arrived just in the moment to defend his disciples. Wei Wuxian had to run away before getting caught, but Hanguang – Jun had already suspected it could be Wei Ying. He saw Lan Wangji was staring at the darkness as he was secretly watching him from far behind. Then there was a person approached Lan Wangji. "Senior Y/N" young disciples chanted. You were glad to see Lan Wangji and all disciples were safe.

"Y/N" Wei Wuxian whispered "you are still at Cloud Recesses. It's good to see you. Hope we can meet again" he smiled to himself.

"Hanguang-Jun" you called Lan Wangji. He turned around and walked away with you.

After Lan Wangi finally brought Wei Wuxian back to Gusu he did not forget to run behind you. When you were petting rabbits he hugged you from back, giving you a heart attack. "Y/N" he purred. "Wei Ying!" you panicked ( note that - you were the only other person who knew he was real Wei Wuxian and not Mo Xuanyu after Lan Wangji and Lan Xichen then) Wei Wuxian laughed but did not release you. "Are you not happy to see me after many years? No. I'm not letting you go"

"Wei Ying, I missed you so much but..." You sighed. It wasn't that you were not happy to see him but you did not want a new rumor to add up to the ongoing list. Then, there heard some noises and Wei Wuxain dropped his hug. Less than a couple of minutes Lan Sizhui and some young disciples came.

"We can't hug because of them? " Wei Wuxian pointed young disciples with a pouty face. You were so embarrassed when young disciples were confused and said, "I'm going to the library" because you wanted to run away from the situation but Wei Wuxian immediately wanted to follow you. "I'm coming too" he said and about to touch your hand but Lan Jingyi interfered.

"Are you crazy? "he yelled at Wei Wuxain" You shouldn't be so close to Senior Y/N"

Wei Wuxian smirked. "Ah! what made you think so?"

"because Hanguang- Jun..." Lan Jingyi stepped front and was about to bluster but Lan Sizhui dragged Lan Jingyi back. "Apologize for our behavior, Senior Mo". He bowed and you tried to melt the tension by saying "Sizhui, do not be late for lunch and take everyone with you", despite you were flushing after hearing about Lan Wangji.

"Senior Y/N, we will go now" Lan Sizhui bowed you and turned to Wei Wuxain "Senior Mo, we are more than happy to escort you"

Lan Jingyi rolled his eyes. He was not delighted to walk with Wei Wuxian anywhere. Wei Wuxian could not reject the kind invitation of Lan Sizhui. He looked at you and you nodded approving the suggestion. "Y/N, will you come too?"

"I'll be there soon" you smiled before leaving the group.

Wei Wuxian was half disappointed that you did not join them, but left with Lan Sizhui. However, you could not meet him at dining hall as Wei Wuxian was then ready go to Qinghe with Lan Wangji and you met them before the exit of the Cloud Recesses instead.

"Hanguang-Jun, I'm coming with you two"

Hanguang-Jun shook his head sightly "stay".

"No' you said sternly. Wei Wuxian giggled "feisty huh?" Actually he enjoyed how you rejected Hanguang-Jun's order. Lan Wangji did not say anything but for Wei Wuxian's surprise, Lan Wangji helped you to getting on the back of a pony, and took reins of both his horse and your pony as you were no good at riding on your own.

The journey did not end at Qinghe and it went further. Everywhere Lan Wangji was in constant anxiousness that you might get hurt and made you stay at comfortable inns until he dealt with dangerous places. (exactly, he was spoiling you).

One night when you were at Qiting Tavern, you were suddenly called by Wei Wuxian. When you ran to him there was drunken Lan Wangji besides him trying to stand steady. With an absent mind Lan Wangji looked at you and passing both you and Wei Wuxain made his way to bed. Wei Wuxian looked at you and you looked at him.

"Where's he been? "You asked worriedly.

“Lan Zhan! Lan Zhan! Lan Zhan! He is very stubborn" Wei Wuxian shook his head with hands on his hips. Next, he narrated you the story of from Lan Wangji trying to give him hens to where he called you. You giggled. You knew Lan Wangji could be a baby, sometimes when he was drunk.

After bidding goodnight to Wei Wuxian, you returned to your room, but before you could fall asleep, your eyes widened as Lan Wangji came to your bed staggering. He just plonked on small bed and started cuddling. "Y/N" he cooed and snuggled closer.

"Lan Zhan" you smiled as you found him had fallen asleep while hugging you.

At Yi City Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxain had met the juniors and together they came to Tanzhou at night. Out of all shops Lan Sizhui's eyes caught a toy store where there were paper butterflies. Even though Jin Ling insulted him for fancying toys, he could not resist buying a paper toy just like the one he got in his childhood.

You saw how dearly he was holding the butterfly and could not resist buying another for him. Lan Sizhui overjoyed and for a second he forgot Gasu rules, and threw arms around you. He has grown up taller than you but still hugging you as if he was a child. "Senior Y/N"

"Is Senior Y/N his mother? They don't look related? Anyway, Senior Y/N is spoiling him. May be that's why he is behaving like a kid after all" Jin Ling mocked.

"Yes, Senior Y/N is his mother and Hangunag-Jun is his father, and they do what they want. Do you have more questions?" Lan Jingyi retorted shutting Jin Ling's mouth.

You left the Sizhui with his friends and went to the inn where Lan Wangji told you to wait that day. On the other hand, it took a while for Lan Wangji to talk with Lan Xichen and to deal with bickering juniors at downstairs before reaching you. The juniors saw he was carrying liquor upstairs but there was something else in his other hand too. After he left Jin Jingyi suddenly realized what it was and dropped the pieced of the meat he was eating his for the second time.

"Wasn't that a jade rabbit?"

Lan Sizhui coughed.

When Lan Wangji walked in to the room, you and Wei Wuxain were having a chat. Wei Wuxain through this journey was thinking what kind of a relationship that you and Lan Wangji were having. The rumors were unavoidable, and he heard from random men that Hanguang-Jun and you were a couple, and you must have must have fed him with a love portion on him or he would never be fell for you. Then Wei Wuxian did not hesitated to reply with answers outwitting them and emphasizing how cute you were. Anyway, since he returned he felt that he was having serious feelings for you, even though he was been his usual flirty self earlier . Wei Wuxain wondered, if you felt the same sometimes or if you had mixed feelings and trying to replace his care with Lan Wangji's."Lan Zhan!" Wei Wuxian was glad to see Lan Wangji with liquor and grabbed it quickly from Lan Wangji before pouring it to his mouth. "I missed good times" he said while drinking.

"Y/N, did you have dinner?" Lan Wangji asked.

"No, we were waiting for you"

" Okay, then let's all have dinner" Wei Wuxain cheered up and grabbed Lan Wangji's arm by one hand and yours by the other, dragging you both downstairs. When you all sat, Lan Wangji was next to you and Wei Wuxian was the opposite. The juniors were still having dinner while food was serving for you.

"Y/N, shall we have a walk afterwards?" Wei Wuxain asked after some time. You immediately looked at Lan Wangji. He was listening but poured tea to your cup instead of saying something.

"Ah! Lan Zhan, can come with us too" you said trying to not make Lan Wangji provoke.

"Nah! Hanguang-Jun and I walked so many miles together how about us alone? We have many things to catch up" Wei Wuxian pouted.

Suddenly, you felt someone's arm was touching yours and you had not realized that Lan Wangji was moving closer until his arm was glued to yours. The whole hall was silent watching the scene.

"Senior Mo, isn't it late now?" you mumbled.

"Are you shy for me? Cute" Wei Wuxian laughed warmly.

From behind you felt, Lan Wangj's chest and the juniors gasped as it was new to them to see clinginess of Hanguang-Jun as he had never done that in public. In spite of all, Wei Wuxain was still messing with Lan Wangji.

"It's up to you to decide. I wish you meet me in the garden" He said blowing you a kiss. Lan Wangji thumped the table with his tea cup and stood up. Fuming, he climbed upstairs.

Wei Wuxian smirked. "Y/N, maybe I'm helping you if you are into Hanguang-Jun or may be helping you to decide" He was not even slightly affected by Lan Wangji's reaction while everyone else were terrified and muttered to you.

You did not care what it meant as you were busy chasing Lan Wangji. " Lan Zhan! " You caught Lan Wangji's hand and he shook it off instantly while walking straight to his room. " Lan Zhan! Please don't go" You begged but he was not even looking at you. " Lan Zhan" you hugged Lan Wangji.

"Why are you mad with me?"

“You like him flirting with you?" he said trying to pull you off from him. "No" you cried holding his waist tight burring your face in his robes" No, I LOVE YOU . Hanguang- Jun, Lan Zhan, Lan Wangji... I only need you" you cried.

Lan Wangji pulled you off and lifted you up with in blink and connected his lip with you. He kissed you hungrily even though, Lan Wangji always used to kiss you tenderly until now. You tied your legs around his waist and hands around Lan Wangji's neck. It took only a second for him to close the door and pin you against the wall before peppering kisses on your neck.

You pulled off Lan Wangji's forehead ribbion and accidently knocked off a jug next to you while doing that. Right at the moment Lan Sizhui, Lan Jingyi and Ouyang Zizhen were walking to your room passing by Lan Wangji's room as Lan Sizhui was concerned about you after what happened in at dinner.

They heard the noise of the glass and looked at each other. "Is there some trouble?" they thought rushing towards the door but before they enter Wei Wuxian ran into them. "I'll go first. Everyone stay behind" but he did not go in either as he lightly heard your moans, when he was too close to the door. He smirked besides the little disappointment in his heart. It was no longer unclear for Wei Wuxian who you loved the most.

"Let's go Hanguang-Jun is fine. Also don't go to Senior Y/N's room to disturb." He said to impatient juniors.

"but Senior Mo..." Lan Sizhui was still worried.

"Ah not now. Ask Hanguang-Jun about it in the morning perhaps. Tssk didn't I save you all from being poisoned? Listen to me then" Wei Wuxian winked.

Finally, "go go " Wei Wuxian had to chase them away on his own when the young disciples were yet staring at him.

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ibijau · 4 years

Note

Losing their memory only to have it come back after a much awaited true love’s kiss Nie Huaisang & Lan Xichen please. Lan Xichen loses his memory (maybe on a night hunt?) And even though him and Nie Huaisang have been together for over a year they haven't told anyone else yet so Nie Huaisang tries to wait for him to remember on his own but when he doesn't Nie Huaisang eventually breaks down and ends up kissing him. (Either completely alone or in front of a huge crowd) again I don't mind changes

also on AO3

this got a bit out of hand and is nearly 6K, oops?

Lan Xichen turns toward Nie Huaisang, and smiles politely.

“And you are?”

Nie Huaisang nearly drops his fan. More than the question, it is the tone of theother man’s voice that shocks him. It is the polite but slightly distant tone that Lan Xichen uses when talking to sect leaders or people who have come to beg for Gusu Lan’s help. Nie Huaisang has only once before been on the receiving end of that tone, the first time he came to visit Lan Xichen after the events in that temple.

It was a slap back then to be treated so coldly.

It is even more so now, with the new balance they’ve tentatively started to reach.

Nie Huaisang is too stunned to answer, but the juniors around Lan Xichen seem unsurprised by this. They trade a few worried glances, then the most confident Lan junior grabs Lan Xichen’s sleeve and smiles up at him.

“Lan zongzhu, that’s Nie zongzhu,” he explains. “He’s the one who came with the Nie juniors to help supervise the Night Hunt. You really don’t remember that either?”

“Not right now,” Lan Xichen amicably admits. “But I’m sure it will come back to me very soon. I’m sorry if that was rude, Nie zongzhu,” he adds, turning his attention back to Nie Huaisang and bowing slightly. “I seem to have suffered through a slight mishap and cannot remember a number of things. Please be patient with me if I behave inappropriately.”

Behind Lan Xichen, a few of the Nie juniors grimace. Even the Lan kids look uncomfortable. None of them know how close the two adults with them are, but they’ve seen their friendly banter earlier in the day, miles away from this reserved manner of address. Lan Xichen has never called Nie Huaisang ‘Nie zongzhu’ outside of discussion conferences. It feels wrong, so wrong that Nie Huaisang almost feels dizzy.

He keeps himself calm though. The children are already very distressed, and Lan Xichen is obviously not in a state to deal with anything, so Nie Huaisang has to take charge until someone more competent comes along.

“What happened?” he asks the Lan junior who spoke earlier. “Did he get hurt?”

A wound to the head could explain temporary difficulties, but Lan Xichen doesn’t look unwell. Indeed, the Lan junior only briefly hesitates before shaking his head.

“We’d spotted the demon,” the boy explains, glancing up at his sect leader. “Lan zongzhu thought there was something strange about it, so he asked us to stay back while he got a better look. But the demon spotted him and did something, and now he’s like that and doesn’t remember anything.”

Nie Huaisang nods along. So does Lan Xichen.

“If that’s so, I’m glad I went ahead,” he says. “A demon? How frightful. I’m glad none of you children were harmed.”

In spite of his growing anxiety, Nie Huaisang can’t help a weak smile upon hearing this. Even like this, Lan Xichen is still the same person, and Nie Huaisang is impossibly fond of him. It must be terrifying to not know who anyone is or what’s going on, and yet Lan Xichen is so fundamentally kind that he’s still more worried about the children than his own state.

“Indeed, we were lucky,” Nie Huaisang agrees, opening his fan to hide that smile he can’t contain. “From the way villagers described it, I wouldn’t have expected that demon to be strong enough to harm Zewu-Jun. That’s you,” he adds, catching Lan Xichen’s confused gaze. “Your courtesy name is Lan Xichen, you are sect leader of Gusu Lan, and your title is Zewu-Jun.”

“It’s pretty,” Lan Xichen muses. “What is your title, Nie zongzhu?”

Nobody says anything, but Nie Huaisang can still hear the juniors of both thinking ‘Headshaker’. He doesn’t get called that too much these days, but he doubts that it will ever fully leave him. Usually he doesn’t mind, but somehow it’d be embarrassing for this more innocent version of Lan Xichen to know anything about Nie Huaisang’s tricks.

“I don’t have a title,” he announces, before turning again to the children. “Do you have everyone from your group? Did you count yourself after the demon escaped? No one missing or added?”

“No, Nie zongzhu,” a different Lan boy answers. “We’re the same number as before. Nie zongzhu, can you cure Lan zongzhu?”

However touched he is that anyone would have that sort of faith in him, Nie Huaisang grimaces.

“No, probably not. Let’s go back to the inn for now, and from there I’ll send a distress signal to warn Hanguang-Jun.”

“Hanguang-Jun?” Lan Xichen curiously repeats. “A friend of mine?”

Before Nie Huaisang can answer, the Lan juniors all start correcting their sect leader, eager to explain who Lan Wangji is. Even some of the Nie children join in, such is the fame of the great Hanguang-Jun. All Nie Huaisang can do is herd everyone toward the village where they’re staying, and make sure that nothing too outrageously untrue is said.

He notices that while the children don’t hesitate to speak about Lan Wangji and Lan Xichen’s claims to fame from the Sunshot campaign and after, they are careful not to say anything about more recent events. The oldest among them can’t be much more than thirteen, but they already have enough good sense to guess that speaking of Jin Guangyao would only hurt Lan Xichen. Nie Huaisang feels proud of them, though he knows he has no reason. He’s not the one who raised them, and even his own disciples have not felt his influence much.

Perhaps more than pride, it is gratefulness that he feels. Or else, it might be admiration. Such is the effect that Lan Xichen has on people: it is impossible to know him and not care for him.

With the children chatting and Lan Xichen listening, they make it safely to the inn. That’s where Lan Wangji and the inevitable Wei Wuxian find them after a few hours.

Things, after that, go very fast. Lan Wangji checks on his brother while Wei Wuxian interrogates the juniors to learn more about the demon. Nie Huaisang stands to the side, knowing he won’t be of any help. He pays their bill, and announces to the village chief that they won’t be able to eliminate the demon just yet, but will make sure the situation isn’t allowed to degenerate.

It is a bit of a surprise when Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian say that they have no idea how to get Lan Xichen back to normal, but it isn’t a huge shock either. Nie Huaisang is starting to suspect the demon might have been extremely powerful, but merely of mischievous temper rather than outright evil and thus only caused small problems for local people. It is a little worrying that Lan Xichen might have been cursed, but the Lan elders are wise people and they will set him right in a matter of days.

So while Lan Wangji takes his brother home, followed by his husband and the Lan juniors, Nie Huaisang gathers his own little disciples and prepares to do the same without having exchanged another word with Lan Xichen. It doesn’t bother him too much.

He knows he’ll soon hear from Lan Xichen, and together they'll laugh about this misadventure.

As days turn into weeks, Nie Huaisang tries not to worry about the lack of news coming from the Cloud Recesses. If things weren’t going well, he would have heard about it. Gusu Lan might have a rule against gossip, but servants and guest disciples still like to chat. Just as Nie Huaisang was among the first to hear when Lan Xichen entered seclusion after the death of Jin Guangyao, he’s sure he would know if his curse had proved impossible to lift.

Lan Xichen must be fine.

Which means, also, that his silence must be a deliberate choice. That for whatever reason, he cannot find time to spare to tell his lover that he is feeling better, nor to schedule when they might try to meet again. Lan Xichen is a busy man, and ruling Gusu Lan is a more involved job than ruling Qinghe Nie, so Nie Huaisang has been warned from the start that if they chose to change the nature of their friendship, there would be long periods where they wouldn’t meet.

Nie Huaisang, refusing to appear possessive or clingy, decides not to ask for news when none is given. He has distracted Lan Xichen from his responsibilities too often when he was playing the fool, he cannot continue doing so now that he is no longer hiding.

Weeks continue passing, and still not a word from the Cloud Recesses, except an official letter reminding Nie Huaisang that he is invited to a discussion conference set there. The letter bears Lan Xichen’s seal, further proving that he is fine and simply too busy to fool around. Or perhaps that incident with the demon, and how useless Nie Huaisang was in the aftermath, has reminded Lan Xichen that aside from plotting murder and painting, his lover isn’t good for much.

The advantage of a secret relationship, Nie Huaisang realises one day, is that there’s no need for a public break-up. Lan Xichen only has to stop contacting him, and things are over.

He realises, also, that it was Lan Xichen who insisted on keeping things secret as they figured out if this could work. He had said that Lan Qiren and Lan Wangji might have objections otherwise, which seemed like a wise consideration at the time, but now Nie Huaisang can only wonder…

If this was Lan Xichen taking revenge for being left in the dark about Jin Guangyao’s true nature, then he played his cards well. Nie Huaisang never saw it coming, though perhaps he should have.

Even for a man as kind as Lan Xichen, some things must be too much to forgive.

When the time for that discussion conference comes, Nie Huaisang considers not going. There’s never much there that interests him in those conferences, and he doesn’t quite feel ready to face Lan Xichen yet after what he is now convinced was a silent break-up. He also refuses to give anyone the satisfaction of having wounded him, though, and that means he has to go to Gusu and act unaffected.

Not so long ago, it would have been odd to arrive at the gates of the Cloud Recesses and not be greeted in person by Lan Xichen. Usually whoever is guarding the entrance has instructions to go warn their sect leader that his old friend has arrived, allowing Lan Xichen to lead Nie Huaisang inside even though he was given a jade token long ago, back after his brother’s death.

This time, Nie Huaisang gets to use that token at last, because he is told to go in alone since Lan Xichen isn’t free to come at the moment. He supposes he should feel grateful that the token hasn’t been deactivated. Maybe Lan Xichen feared there would be a scandal. Maybe he doesn’t care enough to remember that Nie Huaisang even has that token.

Either way, Lan Xichen isn’t there, and ultimately it is Lan Wangji who comes to meet him and leads him to the guest quarters. Nie Huaisang figures it’s better than if it had been Lan Qiren, who still scares him a little from his time as a student.

At dinner that evening, Lan Xichen is absent. Nie Huaisang doesn’t ask any questions, but someone else does, only to be told that Lan Xichen has to deal with some urgent situation and likely won’t be present during the entire discussion conference. There’s some whispers about that, unsurprisingly, but no one is alarmed and Nie Huaisang least of all. With Gusu Lan’s reputation, they tend to be asked to help with very delicate cases that require great expertise. It is not so extraordinary for Lan cultivators to have to drop previous engagements to go help those in need.

Nie Huaisang may or may not be relieved that he won’t have to face his former lover just yet. Either way, he is careful not to show any emotion, especially once he notices that Wei Wuxian keeps glancing his way.

He will not give anyone the satisfaction of seeing his heartbreak.

Come morning, the discussion conference starts as it normally would. Lan Xichen’s absence is hardly felt at all. Lan Qiren is more than competent to represent Gusu Lan, having done so for many years. If Nie Huaisang’s eyes accidentally start looking for Lan Xichen every time someone says something particularly stupid… well, it’s unlikely anyone will notice. His reputation has improved, but Qinghe Nie is still not quite back to being a Great Sect again, nor is it likely to happen in his lifetime, so nobody really pays attention to him. Nobody except Lan Xichen, and…

Well, not even that anymore.

Which is fine.

Nie Huaisang has managed to be on his own for ten years, he doesn’t mind going back to that. The only regret he allows himself is that time passes so slowly in those damn conferences when he has nothing to look forward to. Inane chatter is so much worse without the promise of stolen tenderness later on.

But instead of being able to run to his lover’s arms

, when the discussion ends for the day, Nie Huaisang finds Wei Wuxian waiting for him at the door of the hall.

“Nie-xiong, let’s have a chat,” Wei Wuxian demands, grabbing him by the arm and kidnapping him so he cannot join others to dinner.

“I’m kind of hungry,” Nie Huaisang complains. “Can it wait?”

Wei Wuxian grins, and takes a small box from his sleeve, holding out for Nie Huaisang to remove the lid.

Nie Huaisang starts salivating the instant the smell hits his nose.

“Dumplings from that place you used to like,” Wei Wuxian announces. “It’s still the same man making them. So, can we have a chat, or would you rather have a proper Lan dinner with everyone?”

“Wei-xiong, you are the worst and I hate you,” Nie Huaisang grumbles, staring at the dumplings. “Fine, I’ll listen to you.”

Wei Wuxian grins and continues pulling him away from everyone. Lan Qiren, who leaves the hall last, notices them going away and glares at them but doesn't actually say anything.

"I see the in-laws are liking you a little better these days," Nie Huaisang remarks, carefully grasping one dumpling. He would have preferred not eating with his hands, but he can make sacrifices for the sake of a good meal. "Not long ago, Lan Qiren would have gone mad, seeing you disturb his conference like this."

"I didn't disturb anything, you lot were done for the day," Wei Wuxian objects, letting go of Nie Huaisang’s arm. He too grabs a dumpling, and inelegantly shoves it in his mouth. "And he's glad I'm helping with Lan Xichen," he adds, spitting food. "It's a difficult situation."

Nie Huaisang knows he's being baited. He truly knows it.

"What about Lan Xichen?" he still asks, unable to stop himself.

"Nie-xiong, don't you remember that curse he was hit with? We're still trying to lift it."

Nie Huaisang stops in his tracks and stares at Wei Wuxian.

"What do you mean you're still trying to… It's been months! What could take you so long? Aren't you supposed to be a cultivation genius? Isn't Gusu Lan a well of wisdom?"

Wei Wuxian shrugs, and gobbles another dumpling.

"So you really didn't know, eh?"

"How was I supposed to know? No one saw fit to inform me of this situation. Excuse me for having too much faith in your competence, Wei-xiong."

"Didn't it strike you as odd that Lan Xichen stopped contacting you after that incident?" Wei Wuxian retorts. "I know the two of you had become close again lately. Some friend you are, letting this much time pass without news."

Nie Huaisang's face burns at those words, and he quickly opens his fan to hide behind. It shouldn't surprise him that Wei Wuxian guessed what was going one between him and Lan Xichen.

"Yes, yes, we both know I'm a terrible friend, especially to Zewu-Jun," he grumbles. "I just assumed he was busy. Not everybody can ditch their responsibility whenever they please to go Night Hunting like you do, Wei-xiong." Nie Huaisang pauses, and sighs. "Is it really serious? Is he in any danger?"

Can I help? he wants to ask, though the very idea is so ridiculous it isn't even worth saying out loud. If all of Gusu Lan and Wei Wuxian have failed to bring Lan Xichen back to normal, Nie Huaisang won't be of any use.

"It's more inconvenient than anything," Wei Wuxian says, lifting a weight from Nie Huaisang's shoulders. "Aside from the memory loss, he doesn't suffer at all. His cultivation is still the same. He hasn't even forgotten everything either. He recalls everything to do with cultivation or the arts quite well, he can still fight without problem… But anything personal is just gone."

"Oh. Well, then it might be more of a blessing than a curse," Nie Huaisang remarks. "Or have you told him…"

Wei Wuxian quickly shakes his head, nibbling on another dumpling. Nie Huaisang steals another one and does the same, refusing to watch his dinner be eaten under his nose like this.

"We only told him basic things, to see if it would help his memory. He knows he has an uncle, a brother, that I'm married to Wangji… But since that didn't really help, we figured it was better not to say too much. Lan Qiren decided it would just have distressed him."

Nie Huaisang nods. He still remembers the way Lan Xichen looked that night, at that temple, after everything had come to light. To inflict that upon him a second time would have been too cruel.

"Truly a blessing then," Nie Huaisang muses. "Maybe it's for the best and we should let him be."

"Nie-xiong, you really are too dramatic," Wei Wuxian complains. "We've told him that his past has painful things in it, but he still wants to remember. And you should know, he's been asking about you."

Hearing this startles Nie Huaisang who gapes at Wei Wuxian.

"Didn't… Didn't you say he doesn't remember anything? Wei-xiong, make up your mind about this. I swear if you're lying…"

"Not lying," Wei Wuxian retorts, biting into the last dumpling. "He can't remember anything from before that Night Hunt, but apparently you make a strong impression on him that day. He frequently asks about the 'handsome young man' and has said a few times he wants to thank you for helping and keeping the children calm that day."

"He's just being polite," Nie Huaisang grumbles, his cheeks heating up upon hearing that even without memory of their acquaintance, Lan Xichen still finds him handsome. His looks aren’t too bad, but he doesn’t quite compare to some other cultivators. "I suppose some things don't change."

Wei Wuxian shrugs, and puts away the now empty box.

“So, Nie-xiong, are you coming with me so see Zewu-Jun? We told him you’d be here, he’s very impatient to ‘meet’ you at last.”

“No,” Nie Huaisang says.

“No?”

“No.”

“And why not?” Wei Wuxian asks, his expression quickly losing its warmth. “Aren’t you two quite close lately?”

Nie Huaisang hides behind his fan, and looks away.

“Wei-xiong, me coming to see Zewu-Jun can only have two effects,” he says, and raises a finger. “One, it does nothing to help his memory, he realises that aside from my face I don’t have much to interest him, and he’ll be embarrassed for even asking about me. I’m not stupid, without shared experiences, there’s little to draw him to me. It will just be awkward for both of us. Or else...” He raises a second finger. “Two, seeing me unlocks his memory. And wouldn’t that be cruel? He has a chance to live free from the burden of what happened, I would not take that from him.”

“Nie-xiong, you’re still a coward after all,” Wei Wuxian remarks.

“Think what you will,” Nie Huaisang retorts. “I’ve had to hurt him once like this. I can’t do it again. Could you, if it was Lan Wangji?”

“I know Lan Zhan would want to remember. Without the bad, we wouldn’t have the good either. Zewu-Jun said he wants to remember too, and he said he wants to see you. Isn’t that more important than your guilt, Nie-xiong?”

Nie Huaisang grits his teeth. There’s no reasoning with Wei Wuxian when he’s convinced to be right, and for someone who was so blind for so long, Wei Wuxian certainly thinks himself an expert about romance.

Lucky him, if what he has with Lan Wangji is worth all the pain, all the suffering. Nie Huaisang, given the choice, would rather not have gone through all of that. Even if it meant never getting the chance to be with Lan Xichen, who surely would have picked someone else if life hadn’t pushed them together. And whatever Lan Xichen says now, when he doesn’t know what darkness lurks in his past, Nie Huaisang is convinced he will regret it if his memories return to him.

Nie Huaisang doesn’t mind making that choice for him.

It won’t be the first time.

Besides, he’s already mourned the romance that had only just started between him and Lan Xichen. He is quite fine with having lost this, even if it isn’t in the way he imagined.

It’s fine.

Everything is fine, and this is for the best.

“I’ve made my choice, Wei-xiong,” Nie Huaisang announces with all the confidence he can fake. “Please tell Zewu-Jun I cannot meet him. Even if he’s upset at first, I’m sure he’ll get over it quite easily.”

“Nie-xiong!”

Ignoring his old friend, Nie Huaisang turns around and starts walking back toward the heart of the Cloud Recesses.

If he feels a cold, gnawing sensation in his chest and stomach, he’ll blame it on hunger. After all, Wei Wuxian very rudely ate over half his dinner.

Due to a mistake, the disciples Nie Huaisang brought with him to the conference have been given their own separate room rather than to stay in the same guest quarters as him, as would be more usual. Or, well, it might be unkind to call this a mistake. It is an arrangement that became needed after things changed between him and Lan Xichen, so they could more easily have time alone. Nie Huaisang can’t remember what excuse they gave to justify the need for this, but apparently whoever is in charge of organising things for the guests wasn’t told that this isn’t needed anymore.

A shame, because Nie Huaisang isn’t particularly in the mood to be alone. Or at least, not in the mood to be alone in the damn Cloud Recesses, where he has no way of getting his hands on alcohol except through Wei Wuxian and… well, it’s not really an option. Nie Huaisang will have to face his renewed heartbreak sober, which isn’t something anyone should have to go through, he thinks.

Just as Nie Huaisang starts wondering if he should just go to sleep and try to forget this unfortunate situation, there’s a knock on his door.

It is odd for anyone to come see him. His disciples know they can’t wander around so close to curfew unless there’s an emergency, in which case they wouldn’t knock. Wei Wuxian is angry at him, and will probably remain so for a few days to a few weeks, until he forgets they had an argument. King of Grudges Lan Wangji has done his best to pretend Nie Huaisang doesn’t exist, just as he does with Jiang Cheng. Nie Huaisang can’t think of anyone who might come see him.

There’s another knock on the door, the rhythm of it familiar, yet also not. After some hesitation, Nie Huaisang decides to go check, though he carefully keeps one hand on the handle of the dagger he took to carrying everywhere since launching in motion his revenge plan.

Nie Huaisang opens the door.

And then very nearly closes it again when he sees who his visitor is.

“I’m sorry for coming so late,” Lan Xichen says with a polite smile. “And I understand that you told Wei Wuxian that you had no desire to speak to me, but I really must have answers for some of my questions.”

Nie Huaisang does some quick math. He could still try to close the door. Either Lan Xichen would accept his rejection and things would end for good, or he will force the door open and Nie Huaisang simply isn’t strong enough to stop that. He knows what Lan Xichen would normally do, but he has no idea how different this version of Lan Xichen is. Nie Huaisang would rather not risk antagonising him, not now that they aren’t even friends anymore, and not when he knows better than most how terrifying Lan Xichen could be, if he just bothered.

With a sigh, Nie Huaisang gestures for Lan Xichen to come in.

“I have little to tell you that your brother and his husband couldn’t say better than me,” Nie Huaisang meekly states, his heart clenching at the sight of Lan Xichen in this room, too much like other times and yet so different. “But I’ll try to be of use, of course.”

“I’ve tried asking them first,” Lan Xichen reveals as he steps inside, letting Nie Huaisang close the door behind him. “But they’ve admitted that they didn’t know the answer to some of my questions, and they were reluctant to share speculation with me.”

Nie Huaisang hides a grimace behind his fan. He supposes he should be grateful that Wei Wuxian and his husband have acquired such a distaste for gossip, but sometimes it’s really annoying.

“If they don’t know, I doubt I’ll know much more, Zewu-Jun.”

“And I think you do,” Lan Xichen softly insists. “I have done my own share of speculation. I have found some letters, some paintings, a few gifts, and so I must ask… Nie zongzhu, am I right in thinking we were not only friends?”

The hopefulness in Lan Xichen’s face, in his voice, are so unbearable that Nie Huaisang has to look away.

Of course Lan Xichen would have figured that out. However much they tried to hid in public, in private they were quite open about the way they felt, all the more so because they never had the chance to meet quite as often as they would have liked. Nie Huaisang’s letters were hardly restrained, though still more so than some of the ones Lan Xichen sent him. The content of those would have left no doubt possible as to the nature of their relationship.

“Zewu-Jun, I’m not sure this really matters,” Nie Huaisang says, avoiding the question. “Since you have no memory of anything, no matter what our links were in the past, it would be unfair of me to demand for them to be maintained. I will not make demands of you, don’t worry.”

“I would not mind if you did,” Lan Xichen protests, stepping closer. “All these weeks, I’ve been thinking of you a lot. Everyone else acted so worried, but you were the one person who kept his calm, you took care of the children, you made sure the innkeeper was paid, you even made sure to update the people who had called for our help on the state of their problem… I was so impressed by how level-headed you were, and that’s why I started asking questions about who we were to each other.”

Blood rushes to Nie Huaisang’s face upon hearing his behaviour that day being praised. To him, what happened back then is a bit of a blur because he was so worried for Lan Xichen, so he doesn’t really remember what he did at all. Surely he can’t have handled it that well, it must just be that Lan Xichen is too kind, as always.

“Zewu-Jun, things between us… I won’t deny that they were a certain way,” Nie Huaisang admits, gripping his fan a little harder. “And I am very touched if I made a good impression on you that time. But things between us… you have to understand, even if things were good, it had come at a heavy price. I have done many things that you did not approve of. Things I am not sorry about, because in the end, I got what I wanted, and I’m the sort of person for whom that’s what matters. To put it bluntly, I’m not a very good person, and I have no intention on improving myself.”

“I don’t think you’re quite so bad,” Lan Xichen retorts with amusement. “I have read the letters you sent me. You seem like a very soft and sentimental person, Nie zongzhu, and I think I like that.”

Nie Huaisang sighs, and shakes his head.

Suddenly, he misses Lan Xichen.

The real Lan Xichen, the one who knew his tenderness and softness didn’t mean he wasn’t also capable of horrors. The one who loved him in spite of it… perhaps even for it, at times. And the reverse was true as well. Although he'd always had a bit of a crush on Lan Xichen, it wasn't until everything was exposed, until they'd both known the best of the worst of each other, that Nie Huaisang had really fallen in love.

He can't wish for this ignorant Lan Xichen to suffer what the original one had suffered, he isn't that unkind.

But he also can't love someone who doesn't have the life experience to understand why he is the way he is.

"Zewu-Jun, I'm really not the way you think," Nie Huaisang states, as coldly as he can manage. "If you remember someday, then I'll be happy to resume what we had, should you wish it. Until then… for your own good, it's better to go our separate ways. I don't have anything to give you, not as you are now. And I love you too much to wish you the pain of remembering your past."

"So instead, you cause me the pain of being rejected," Lan Xichen bitterly remarks, walking closer, close enough to touch, if Nie Huaisang wanted. He wants to. He still doesn't move. "Can I do anything to change your mind?"

"Zewu-Jun…"

"Please understand it is very unpleasant to hear you say that you love me at the same time you’re pushing me away. If you gave me a chance…”

Nie Huaisang laughs behind his fan.

“Trust me, it’s better for you. Just walk away and forget about me.”

“Nie zongzhu, give me a chance,” Lan Xichen pleads, looking so heartbroken that Nie Huaisang has to avert his eyes.

“It’s better that way.”

It is.

It has to be.

It isn’t like things could have lasted anyway. They both have a duty to their sects, to their families. It really is better this way.

“Then at least… would you kiss me, Nie zongzhu?” Lan Xichen asks.

“Zewu-Jun, that’s not…”

“Give me this at least, if you won’t give me anything else. If we were happy once, don’t I deserve a last goodbye?”

That would be a terrible idea. Nie Huaisang knows himself. If he gets that small taste of what he used to have with Lan Xichen, he’ll be tempted to actually take that risk, and then when it fails, when this too innocent Lan Xichen realises what he’s capable of and starts hating him for it, Nie Huaisang will know it was his fault for being weak, for not making this end cleanly.

It would be stupid to kiss Lan Xichen.

But it’s been months, and the day has been so long, and Nie Huaisang is too tired to continue making the right decisions.

“Just one kiss,” he sighs, closing his fan.

In an instant, he finds himself pulled into Lan Xichen’s embrace, soft lips pressing against his own with a clumsiness that he once found endearing, when it all started. Lan Xichen was so inexperienced when they got together, though he learned fast. To be kissed against with that unskilled enthusiasm is a bitter reminder that this man isn’t quite his Xichen.

Even knowing this, Nie Huaisang returns the kiss with a touch of desperation, his arms around Lan Xichen’s neck, keeping him close while he can have him.

After a while, Lan Xichen’s mouth pulls away. Nie Huaisang, who had closed his eyes at some point, opens them again and finds his lover staring down at him with an air of shock, panting harder than the kiss truly justifies.

Before Nie Huaisang can say anything, Lan Xichen breaks into a smile and kisses him again.

This kiss is different.

This time, Lan Xichen isn’t so clumsy anymore, he knows how to lick into Nie Huaisang’s mouth, how to bite and suck on his lips just right, leaving the other man breathless. His hands are no longer just on Nie Huaisang’s hips either, they move to pet his hair, to grope his ass, his thighs, to pull him closer until there’s no space between their bodies, pushing him against the door until Nie Huaisang is trapped in the most perfect of ways.

When that kiss ends, Nie Huaisang too is breathless, and his legs feel so weak that if he weren’t clinging to Lan Xichen so tightly, he’d fall to his knees for sure.

“You ridiculous man,” Lan Xichen breathes against his lips. “You always have to make things difficult, don’t you?”

Nie Huaisang’s grip tightens. The other man’s voice seems different suddenly. Warmer. If it weren’t foolish to hope…

“Even after all this, you really can’t believe I’d trust you?” Lan Xichen accuses, sounding too amused, too fond. “We’re going to have to work on this, A-Sang. I really thought you’d learned not to try to handle everything alone.”

“Xichen,” Nie Huaisang gasps, half fearful that he’s misunderstanding. “A-Chen, are you…”

“I’m back,” Lan Xichen confirms, rubbing their nose together before stealing a brief kiss. “And I’m not letting you go, you silly man, even if I’m a little cross you’re still so convinced you don’t have my full trust. You’re really…”

“No, don’t scold me,” Nie Huaisang mumbles, suddenly a little embarrassed by how dramatic he’s been, even if he still thinks he wasn’t wrong. “You can scold me later. For now, just kiss me again. I’ve missed it, and I’ve missed you, so kiss me, A-Chen.”

Lan Xichen grins, and promptly obeys.

Nie Huaisang pulls him closer. He loves this man, loves him so much, and he’s so glad to have him back at last.

#xisang #nie huaisang #lan xichen #wei wuxian #mo dao zu shi #mdzs #jau writes #and that's why I haven't done a prompt fill in a bit this one was just so damn long lol #theuntamedmulti

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gingersnapwolves · 4 years

Text

The Untamed, a brief summary [Part 5/6]

Part One: Sword Wizard School

Part Two: The Search for the Yin Iron and the World’s Worst Summer Camp

Part Three: The Fall of Lotus Pier and the Sunshot Campaign

Part Four: The Downward Spiral

Part Five: Mo Manor, Hungry Sabers, and Yi City

Ext, Mo Manor [I … actually have no idea where this is geographically.]

16 years have passed. A mysterious guy whose face we don’t see sits in an inn while a dude enthusiastically tells stories about the horrible Yiling Patriarch (Wei Wuxian’s title before he died.)

Wei Wuxian wakes up. He is confused, as dead people tend to be upon waking up.

ENTER A MENTALLY ILL CHARACTER WHO DESERVED BETTER

He hears the voice of Mo Xuanyu, telling him that he had no choice but to summon him, and now Wei Wuxian must take revenge for him. He has four curse marks on his arm, one for each target.

A sidebar: in the book, Wei Wuxian is summoned into Mo Xuanyu’s body, which makes way more sense. In the show, however, they didn’t really want to change actors halfway through, which I dig, so he’s in his own body for Reasons Never Made Clear. Because of this, they give him a metal mask to wear, saying Mo Xuanyu was a weirdo who wore a mask all the time and nobody has seen his face in years. We all love Xiao Zhan and don’t want him replaced so we accept this.

ENTER THE DUCKLINGS

Here are two young cultivators from the Lan sect, Lan Sizhui and Lan Jingyi. The former is sweet and kind, the latter is ‘fight me’ in a fun way.

Wei Wuxian has no idea what’s going on but decides it’s time to Cause Problems. He figures out that Mo Xuanyu is yet another one of Jin Guangshan’s illegitimate sons. However, Mo Xuanyu’s mother was a member of the gentry, so he got to study at Koi Tower until he got thrown out for unspecified bad behavior. Everyone says that Mo Xuanyu was a lunatic.

Wei Wuxian meets the Lan ducklings, has flashbacks to Lan Wangji, and decides to hide in his room and play sad music on a blade of grass.

An angry sword spirit shows up and kills a bunch of people. The ducklings call Lan Wangji, and Wei Wuxian hides before he can be seen. Lan Wangji wraps everything up and subdues the angry sword spirit but doesn’t know what’s going on.

Three of the four curse marks on Wei Wuxian’s arm vanish, indicating that the three members of the Mo family who were killed were three of the four targets of revenge. Wei Wuxian steals a donkey and runs away.

The mystery man from earlier throws a chunk of gold to the storyteller.

Ext, Dafan Mountain [Yiling]

Wei Wuxian argues with his donkey a lot, and it’s pretty funny.

ENTER A TRUST FUND BRAT

Jin Ling is now 16. He is a huge brat and we like him anyway. Given that he was raised mostly by Jin Guangyao and Jiang Cheng, he’s actually more well-adjusted than he has any right to be. Of course, the bar for ‘well-adjusted’ in this show is sitting on the ground (and half the characters have gone to get shovels). Jin Ling has set up a bunch of spirit capture nets in the forest, and they capture a bunch of cultivators instead. Wei Wuxian cuts them down, and he and Jin Ling get in a fight. (Wei Wuxian doesn’t know who he is, because why would he?)

Wei Wuxian calls him a little punk and pins him to the ground with a talisman. Jiang Cheng shows up and is pissed. Wei Wuxian runs away again.

Turns out everyone is there for some sort of night hunt. Lan Wangji and the ducklings show up. Lan Wangji is a petty bitch who no longer speaks to Jiang Cheng, and it’s great. He’s destroyed all the spirit nets Jin Ling placed for pretty much no reason other than that he can. Jin Ling is pissed. Lan Wangji puts the silencing spell on him because he’s being a brat. Jiang Cheng decides this isn’t worth getting into a bitch fight with Lan Wangji over and huffs off with Jin Ling.

They all end up at the mountain where the statue from the first arc was. It’s eating people again, or something like that. Wei Wuxian talks to the ducklings, who listen to him because he helped them with the sword spirit at Mo Manor.

The statue attacks, and it’s chaos! Wei Wuxian decides that now is the time for some demonic cultivation. He starts playing a new flute (poorly, because he just carved it out of nearby bamboo). Wen Ning shows up. Everyone, including me, goes “WTF?!?!” because we all thought Wen Ning had been destroyed by the Jin sect.

Wei Wuxian realizes this is more trouble than he can handle and uses his flute to get Wen Ning to leave. But it’s too late. Lan Wangji and Jiang Cheng have seen him. Lan Wangji grabs his wrist. They stare at each other for like a solid 30 seconds and it’s great.

Then Jiang Cheng ruins everything, because he assumes (correctly) that someone playing the flute and controlling Wen Ning is, in fact, Wei Wuxian. He hits Wei Wuxian with the lightning whip. A fun feature of the lightning whip is that, if an evil spirit is possessing someone, the whip will smack them out of the body. This doesn’t happen to Wei Wuxian, since he was summoned by Mo Xuanyu himself. Jiang Cheng gets a little confused by this and Lan Wangji takes the opportunity to grab Wei Wuxian and bounce.

Int, Cloud Recesses [Gusu]

Wei Wuxian wakes up in Lan Wangji’s room. He says, ‘if I said I didn’t know where I was these past 16 years, would you believe me?’ and Lan Wangji says ‘yes’ without hesitation. I cry again.

Ext, Cloud Recesses [Gusu]

Lan Wangji is down in the cold springs. Wei Wuxian decides, like a gremlin, to go bug him there. But he sees Lan Wangji shirtless and he’s got a bunch of scars and it freaks Wei Wuxian out so he doesn’t hit on him.

Lan Qiren has been trying to suppress the sword spirit but it attacks him. Wei Wuxian plays his flute (badly) and the ducklings all wonder why the hell he’s even here. They figure out the sword spirit is trying to lead them somewhere.

Ext, Yueyang [Qinghe]

The sword has pointed them here and strange things are afoot. Wei Wuxian asks a guy if there’s some reason the sect leader isn’t taking care of it. He finds out that Nie Mingjue died in the intervening years while he was gone, and that Nie Huaisang is now sect leader and keeps telling people to please not ask him to fix problems because he doesn’t know what he’s doing. Nie Huaisang remains the most relatable.

They run into Jin Ling, who’s there with his adorable dog for night-hunting reasons. Wei Wuxian freaks out because he’s afraid of dogs. Lan Wangji leaps in to defend him and Jin Ling looks like he just found out gay people exist.

Ext, the forest [Qinghe]

There’s a weird tomb full of coffins with sabers in them. Jin Ling has broken in and nearly gets swallowed by the building. Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian rescue him. He now has a gnarly curse mark on his leg. When they get outside, someone’s been watching them. Lan Wangji goes after him while Wei Wuxian gets Jin Ling back to the city. Lan Wangji only gets a scrap of fabric but recognizes the pattern.

Int, an inn [Qinghe]

Jin Ling freaks out when he wakes up because he thinks Mo Xuanyu is nuts. (One must presume he knows Mo Xuanyu better than the ducklings, since Mo Xuanyu is technically his uncle, and Jin Ling lives at Koi Tower a lot of the time so they would have encountered each other.) Wei Wuxian lets him go.

Int, a different inn [presumably] [Qinghe]

Lan Wangji has dragged Nie Huaisang in for a little chat, because he knows Nie Huaisang was spying on them in the forest. Nie Huaisang tries to plead ignorance but then admits that the Nie sect has this problem where their swords are so bloodthirsty that they have to be buried like people and fed criminals occasionally, like one would if they had a particularly large python for a pet. Wei Wuxian clearly wonders how, in that case, they had any right to criticize him for a little light necromancy.

Ext, Yueyang [Qinghe]

Lan Wangji leaves to … shit. I don’t remember. Well, he goes to do something, presumably important, leaving Wei Wuxian on his own. Wei Wuxian promptly gets spotted by Jiang Cheng and Jin Ling, and Jiang Cheng captures him. He says he doesn’t care that the lightning whip didn’t expel him, he knows he’s Wei Wuxian. He’s super pissed but doesn’t actually kill Wei Wuxian or even really hurt him, clearly conflicted about the whole situation.

Jin Ling suddenly ‘remembers’ important information about something that happened earlier to send Jiang Cheng on a wild goose chase. It’s likely that Jiang Cheng doesn’t actually believe this but he leaves anyway. Jin Ling sneaks Wei Wuxian out. Wei Wuxian tells him he’ll be in trouble because Jiang Cheng thinks he’s the Yiling Patriarch. Jin Ling scoffs because Jiang Cheng is always finding ‘Yiling Patriarchs’ in an ongoing search to find his brother.

Once in the forest, Wei Wuxian knocks Jin Ling out. He then transfers the curse mark from Jin Ling to himself because sixteen years of being dead didn’t teach him any self-preservation skills at all.

Int, the spirit-eating saber tomb [Qinghe]

Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian bring the sword spirit to the tomb. It tells them they did a good job and then points them somewhere else, like some sort of spiritual scavenger hunt or an extremely intense game of Where in the World is Carmen San Diego. They theorize that the sword spirit is probably Baxia, Nie Mingjue’s sword, and it’s trying to lead them to wherever his body is. Nie Huaisang looks pretty upset about this, which seems reasonable. Our heroes promise him they’ll figure out what’s going on and return his brother’s body to him if possible.

Lan Wangji gives Wei Wuxian more details on Nie Mingjue’s death. The Nie sect has a history of ‘qi deviation’, which is sort of like a magical backlash. This is, they now figure, likely due to struggling to control these violent saber spirits. Lan Xichen and Jin Guangyao were both working to try to help Nie Mingjue avoid qi deviation but failed, and he had a violent fit, ran away, and was never seen again.

Ext, Yueyang [Qinghe]

Continuing in the vein of ‘shit, a lot happened while you were dead’, Lan Wangji tells Wei Wuxian that Xue Yang turned up a little while afterwards and Jin Guangshan made him a member of the Jin sect. Nie Mingjue wanted him executed for the murder of the Chang clan, but the lone survivor suddenly recanted his testimony, and not long after that, Nie Mingjue died/went missing. Xue Yang ended up in a pretty good spot. Wei Wuxian basically says ‘what a world’ and Lan Wangji takes his drink and knocks it back.

By the way, Jin Guangshan is now dead too, having died ‘in bed’ a little while after Nie Mingjue disappeared. I can’t remember when Wei Wuxian finds that out. But good riddance anyway.

Now drunk after one shot, Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian have a touching moment or twelve. Lan Wangji admits that he regrets not helping Wei Wuxian in his last life, and Wei Wuxian tells him not to worry about it. After Lan Wangji falls asleep, Wei Wuxian goes outside and uses his new flute (which Lan Wangji has fixed up a bit) to summon Wen Ning. He finds that they’ve put nails in his head to suppress his consciousness, and removes them. They reunite and it’s emotional.

But before much can happen, Lan Wangji wanders drunkenly from the inn. Wen Ning goes to hide, and Wei Wuxian ends up babysitting drunk Lan Wangji again and it’s hilarious. Drunk Lan Wangji tries to steal chickens for him and also graffitis a random house.

When they get back to the inn, a masked man shows up and tries to steal the sword spirit. Even black-out drunk, Lan Wangji beats him, but he seems to have inside knowledge of the Lan sect fighting style. Then he uses a teleportation talisman, which hardly anybody has the skill to use.

Ext, Yi City [Hell, as far as I can tell]

Listen. I’m going to be honest with y’all again. This arc messed me up. I have no desire to revisit it in detail and it virtually never comes up in my fics. So I’m going to be very, very brief here.

Xue Yang tricked Xiao Xingchen into killing a bunch of innocent people, including Song Lan, who is now a fierce corpse under Xue Yang’s control. Xiao Xingchen found out what happened and killed himself. Xue Yang freaked out because he either a) actually loved Xiao Xingchen in his own messed up way, or b) was having a tantrum like a little kid who broke their favorite toy by playing too rough with it. Your mileage may vary and a thousand fanfics have been written about this issue. Since then, he’s been hanging out in Yi City, which is full of dead people and poison.

The really important part is that Xue Yang has been using yin iron to do all this stuff.

The ducklings followed a bunch of clues here, along with Jin Ling. Wei Wuxian herds them around while Lan Wangji fights Xue Yang and eventually kills him. The same masked man shows up, grabs the yin iron off Xue Yang’s dead body, and teleports again.

They find a headless body in a coffin underneath Xiao Xingchen’s, and the sword spirit reveals itself to be Baxia, indicating that it is indeed Nie Mingjue. Song Lan, now released from Xue Yang’s control, takes Xiao Xingchen’s sword and a spirit pouch with his fragmented soul and goes to be a wandering cultivator. It’s really depressing.

Ext, some city [I don’t remember]

Everyone’s kind of shell-shocked by the fuckery that was Yi City, so they’re trying to chill out. Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian have a tender moment watching the juniors shopping. Wei Wuxian says, ‘If A-Yuan had lived, he’d be about their age now.’ Lan Wangji looks at him like he just realized he left the stove on. Meanwhile Lan Sizhui is fascinated by a stand selling toys just like ones Wen Yuan had at the Burial Mounds. Hm …

Lan Xichen has arrived. Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji show him Baxia and he’s really sad since he and Nie Mingjue were bros. Wei Wuxian (still pretending to be Mo Xuanyu) says that at this point, they know whoever killed Nie Mingjue and hid his body is a) friends with Xue Yang, and b) familiar with the Lan sect fighting style. He points out that this sounds a lot like Jin Guangyao, who had a ‘complicated history’ with Nie Mingjue.

Lan Xichen says it can’t be Jin Guangyao, because Jin Guangyao has been with him every night talking about important matters for the last week or so. Also, the use of the teleportation talisman has a negative effect on one’s health and he can personally attest that Jin Guangyao shows no signs of having used it. Another two thousand fanfics spring into existence.

At the end of the conversation, he calls Wei Wuxian by his name. Wei Wuxian takes off his mask and says ‘Damn, I should’ve known I couldn’t fool you.’ Lan Xichen pulls that whole ‘oh I didn’t actually know until you confirmed it just now’ trick but let’s be real there is absolutely no idea Lan Xichen didn’t already know, given that his brother has only ever tolerated one (1) person in his entire life.

Int, the inn [wherever they are]

The ducklings are fighting, mostly because Jin Ling is mad that Lan Sizhui said something halfway complimentary about Wei Wuxian, who he hates for killing his father (and causing his mother’s death). The other ducklings are like “bro, chill”. Jin Ling will not chill. Jin Ling will NEVER chill. Wei Wuxian is sad because his nephew hates him.

Lan Sizhui tries to explain that he only meant maybe they should have all the facts before they condemn someone. Jin Ling continues to not be chill. Lan Wangji buys Wei Wuxian some booze to cheer him up.

Despite Lan Xichen’s words, they’re still convinced Jin Guangyao is involved, and make plans to go to Koi Tower and look for Nie Mingjue’s head. Lan Xichen comes back in and tells them he’s thought about it and if they find evidence, they should bring it to him. They agree.

~end of part 5~

#gonna try and finish this up this weekend!#liveblog #the untamed

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honibee-arts · 4 years

Note

ship prompts: nielan ageswapped with their brothers?

The first time Nie Mingjue met Lan Xichen, he was a tiny boy holding tight to his stone faced older brothers hand. His tiny arm was almost swallowed by Lan Wangji's enormous, flowing sleeves. He stood at his brothers side, his honey eyes wide and curious as they peered at Mingjue, studying him curiously.

"Come on didi, say hello to Xichen." His da ge urged quietly, a gentle hand on his back as he clung to the olive and grey silk of his skirts, trying not to pick at the glittering gold embroidered into the fabric.

"H-Hello..." He mumbled.

"Introduce yourself." Huaisang said softly, gently patting his head.

"M... Don't want to."

"Forgive me, Wangji, he's very shy. A moment?"

"Mn. Of course."

Mingjue felt his ears burn in embarrassment as his da ge kneeled down in front of him. He looked away from his brother as Huaisang gently took his hands, softly nudging the slight pudge of his cheek with his fan to turn his head back to face him.

"Didi..." He sighed.

"Mm."

"What's wrong, didi? You can talk to your da ge."

Mingjue said nothing, only stared at the ground, tiny fiat's clenched and cheeks puffed.

"Are you nervous?"

"Keeps looking at me..." Mingjue mumbled.

"Hm?"

"He keeps looking at me like I'm weird..."

"Xichen has never really seen anyone outside his sect before, let alone someone outside his sect who his own age. He's just curious."

"Why can't I be with you and Wangji-ge?" Mingjue mumbled.

"Because Wangji-ge and I have boring things to do. Last time that happened you were lonely, so Wangji-ge brought his didi so you two could play together and make friends." Huaisang said gently. "Can you do that for me? Can you play with Xichen today?"

"Mm... Okay. For da ge."

"For da ge? Okay. Can you introduce yourself to Xichen?" Mingjue nodded hesitantly. "Do you still want da ge to hold your hand?" Mingjue nodded again and Huaisang stood up, taking his small hand in his, squeezing lightly.

"Mm... I'm... I'm Nie Mingjue..."

Xichen let go of his brothers hand and held his short arms out in a small bow.

"I am Lan Xichen. It is nice to meet you. I am sorry for upsetting you."

Mingjues brow furrowed as he reached to stop the boy, holding his arms. The white fabric of his robes was soft and warm in Mingjues hands.

"Why are you bowing?"

"For respect. You are the Second Young Master of the Nie sect. Shushu says I must bow to show respect."

"You don't have to bow to me if we're friends. Da ge says friends don't need to how to each other because they respect each other already."

"Oh... Are we...?"

"Friends?"

"Mn."

"Yeah. You're my friend."

".... I've never had a friend before." the little boy looked down, his sad, honeyed eyes staring at his little white boots.

"Well I'm your friend now."

They had played all day, albeit with some encouragement. Mingjue had learned that day that the Lan sect had many rules, and to him they made life sound miserable. What child could be happy if they weren't allowed to run and laugh and climb and fight?

As the evening began to come in, the boys found themselves growing tired. The last thing Mingjue remembered of that day was his da ge draping his outer robe over them as they curled up in his room on one of his large pillows, Xichens head resting on his chest.

Mingjue had been right about the Gusu Lan Sect rules. Studying here was miserable. He missed his home, the comfort of his own bed. He missed his own rules, his own routine. He missed being able to run, train and fight whenever he wanted. If his days were filled with study back in the Unclean Realm then he would practice the saber until the sun had long since set.

The cursed curfew had banned him from such things.

The lectures were long and dull, his only reprive in this nightmare was Xichen. Mingjue rested his cheek on his fist as he huffed, glaring a hole through the row of Jiang disciples blocking Xichen from his view. He never glared at Jiang Yanli, though. The girl was too kind and gentle for that.

Beside his uncle, Lan Wangji stood tall, the newly minted Hanguang Jun a jade pillar of discipline, the picture of the perfect Lan disciple in modest, flowing white and sky blue robes. His hawk-like eyes bore into Mingjue, silently demanding he sit up straight and pay attention, lest he had to punish him.

Mingjue glanced at the soon-to-be sect leader apologetically. The long lectures made him restless and it was easy for his mind to wander. God's, he couldn't wait to get out of here. He checked to see if Lan Wangji was watching him, but his attention had turned to Jin Zixun and his snickering gaggle of Jin disciples, his bright gold eyes burning as he glared at them.

Taking advantage of Lan Wangji's divided attention, he took a small piece of paperman talisman paper and scribbled a message onto it. His da ge was right. It was a good idea to keep some on him during his studies.

He activated it with a thread of qi and checked if anyone was watching before he sent it in Xichens direction. He hid his smile behind his fist as he watched the red paperman dance toward Xichen in the air, perching playfully on his elegant shoulder.

He felt his fingers twitch as its little arm played with his hair, seeing how Xichens lips twitched into a smile as the paperman relayed Mingjues message. Was he... Jealous of his talisman?

No, no, that couldn't be possible-

Xichen laughed softly, smiling at Mingjue so brilliantly it made his cheeks grow hot.

Okay.

Maybe he was jealous of his talisman but... Xichen was so... So... Pretty. He put everyone around him to shame with his radiance. Since they had been reunited here in Gusu after so long, Xichen had grown almost a full head taller than him and had begun to fill out as he entered the later half of adolescence. His shoulders appeared broader under the countless layers of his blue and white robes, tapering at his waist. His face had lost its child-like softness, giving way to the sharp angled features of a man.

Oh.

Oh no.

He was in love with Lan Xichen.

"Nie Mingjue!" Lan Wangji said sharply. Mingjue startled, turning his attention to the glaring First Jade who was crumpling the paperman in his fist.

Mingjue swallowed thickly, looking up at the glaring first jade nervously.

"Yes, Hanguang Jun?"

"You're in for it now." Snorted Nie Zonghui behind him.

"You were passing notes during a lecture. Go to the library pavilion after this lecture and transcribe the disciplines twenty times. I will supervise you myself."

Twenty? That's a little harsh...

Ignoring the whispers around him, Mingjue stood up and brought his arms out to bow to the First Jade.

"Yes Hanguang Jun. My apologies. It will not happen again."

"It better not." Lan Qiren said sharply, narrowing his eyes at Mingjue. "You may be seated."

Mingjue swallowed thickly, nodding as he sat back down. He felt countless eyes on him as he straightened his spine and squared his shoulders, trying to ignore the snickers of the Jin disciples.

"Try not to take it too personally, Nie-Xiong." Jiang Yanli said quietly, looking over at him sympathetically. "Hanguang Jun has always been harsh with his punishments. A-Xian got punished a lot while he was here."

He gave her a grateful nod, turning his attention back to the lecture.

3000 - appreciate the good people.

Mingjues wrist ached after painstakingly coping all 3000 rules twenty times. He withheld a groan as he pit his brush back into the water, grimacing at ink on his hands, unable to wipe it off onto his white robes. He missed his familiar dark grey robes, comfortable and functional rather than the white guest robes he was ordered to wear.

He checked his ink was dry one last time before collecting the copied rules into a pile. He steeled himself as he stood up and walked over to Hanguang Jun.

"Ah... Hanguang Jun..." Mingjue said awkwardly. He felt his blood turn to ice in his veins as he was met with the First Jades cool gold eyes. "I have finished... I hope these are to your satisfaction."

He plucked the copies from his hand, deathly silent as Mingjue bowed, scanning the copies diligently.

"Nie Mingjue."

"Yes, Hanguang Jun?"

"What are your intentions with my didi?"

"E-Excuse me?"

"You heard me."

"Xichens just my friend..."

"Lying is forbidden in Cloud Recesses." Lan Wangji fixed him with a blank stare. Mingjue was beginning to feel an anxious cold sweat run down his spine. "I care very little for things in this world. My didi is one of the things I do care about. If you hurt him, if you even consider an action that may harm him emotionally, physically, mentally or spiritually, I will not hesitate to flay you down to your bones in front of your sect, do you understand me?"

"Y-yes Hanguang Jun." Mingjue mumbled, terrified and bewildered at the monotone delivery of such a violent threat.

"Begone. I have other more pressing matters to attend to than your lacking discipline."

Since the day in the library, Mingjue hadn't exactly avoided Xichen per se, but tried not to linger too closely, out of fear of his brother. Jiang Yanli walked beside him, chatting brightly about her family back in Yunmeng as he nodded and listened. Da ge was quite fond of Jiang Yanli's own gege, and spoke of their times in Gusu often. The Jiang sect heir had been something of a role model to Mingjue growing up, as he was admittedly more disciplined than his da ge and a much stronger cultivator.

He smiled politely as she tittered on brightly, laughing happily as she recounted the memories of her summers back at home. The mention of such things made him miss Qinghe too.

A gaggle of Jin disciples walked by, snickering about something.

"- too plain for the Young Master. I heard she's willing to kiss up to anyone at this rate. Who would want her? It's a pity really, considering how strong her brothers are." a boy from the Jin sect sighed.

"Is Wei Wuxian really her brother though? From what I've heard they seem... Close." another sneered. "She might be like her father... Unfaithful. Impure."

Mingjue shot a glare at the disciples, gritting his teeth and clenching his fists. The small group bunched together and made a startled sound.

"Nie-Xiong, please, its not worth it. It is nothing to worry about. " Jiang Yanli said softly, but the tears collecting in her eyes said otherwise.

"Keep walking you brute." one of the braver disciples snickered. "She knows what she's worth. She doesn't have her precious brothers to protect her now." behind him, Jiang Yanli sniffled softly. "Especially not her precious A-Xi-"

"Jin Zixun, was it?" Lan Xichen interjected, the polite smile ever present on his face but something dark and enraged behind it.

"You should know who you're sitting next to instead of gazing over at that Nie brute like a cut sleeve."

Oh, that was the last straw.

Baxia pulsed on his back, itching to strike and stain the Jin disciples robes with his crimson blood. The blade twitched, rattling in its holster as Mingjue reached for it.

"A-Jue, don't." Xichen urged, stepping between Mingjue and the Jins. "Fighting is forbidden, please. If you let this de-escalate and calm down then I can get Gege and he can punsih them, alright?" Mingjue grit his teeth, glaring at the cowering disciples. "Please."

".... Fine."

"Report to Hanguang Jun for your punishments. You have broken three rules: no gossiping, no use of frivolous words and no arrogance. You are aware of the rules and yet you have broken them, therefore you must be punished." He said firmly, towering over the Jin disciples who quickly ran off. "Anyway. Gege has heard reports of water ghouls in Biling Lake. He was wondering if you would accompany us on a night hunt, Mingjue-Xiong."

"Water ghouls? A-Xian and A-Cheng could be of help. They're not too far from Gusu and they have lots of experience with water ghouls. They're very common in Yunmeng."

Xichen grinned, laughing softly to himself.

"Yes, I'm sure they'll be of much assistance." He said lightly. Jiang Yanli laughed gently.

"I feel as though I am missing something here."

"You'll see, Mingjue-Xiong. You'll see."

"LAN ZHAAAAAN!" Wei Wuxian screeched as he launched himself at Lan Wangji, throwing his arms around the First Jade.

He had heard tales of the Yunmeng Jiang first Disciple endlessly teasing Lan Wangji, but this happened to be something else... Something more personal as he watched Wei Wuxian wind himself around the statuesque form of Xichens Gege.

"Wei Ying. We are on a night hunt. Behave accordingly."

"He's never behaved accordingly in his life." Jiang Wanyin snorted, folding his arms. "Why is he here? There's no rivers or lakes in Qinghe. I doubt he can swim. His brother couldn't."

"I invited Mingjue-Xiong along so he could gain experience in things like this. Its important to have a broad scope of abilities as a cultivator." Xichen said brightly, humming as he twirled his xiao between his fingers.

Mingjue felt his cheeks burn as Xichen beamed at him. He inhaled deeply and hoped he didn't screw up this whole night hunt.

The water finally settled as the vortex closed, the boats rocking under his feet, causing his stance to waver. He gasped as he stumbled back, colliding with Xichens chest as his arms wrapped around him, steadying him.

"Mingjue-Xiong, are you alright?" Xichen asked, holding him by his waist.

"Hm? Yes, yes I..." I'm trying not to focus on the way you're holding me. Or how beautiful you look when you're a little wet. You're just beautiful. I think I love you.

"You're all wet. Let's get out of here so we can stop to change at the tavern, alright?"

"A-alright."

"Didi." His da ge called from the shade of his seat on the deck surrounding the courtyard, watching diligently as Mingjue moved through sword forms.

"Yes, da ge?" Mingjue replied, flicking his hair off his bare shoulder as the sun bore down on his skin while he trained.

"When were you going to tell me you had a crush on Lan Xichen?" He asked slowly.

"I-I don't!" Mingjue said too quickly, his face flushing rapidly as he whirled around at his brother.

"Your lips say one thing, your body, heart and mind say another. Even your core yearns for him, didi."

"Aiya... Leave me alone... There's no point. I can't have him." He sighed, pointing his blade down into the stone beneath his feet, leaning against the rounded pommel.

"Why not?" Huaisang asked, gently fluttering his fan.

"He's Lan Xichen." Mingjue replied, stating the obvious.

"And you are Nie Mingjue. You are not sect leaders. He is not a sect heir. Union between two men is uncommon but not unheard of."

"So you're, what, asking me to march to Cloud Recesses and demand Lan Xichens hand in marriage from his uncle and gege because of some childish crush?"

"Didi. I brushed off my feelings about Jiang-Xiong like this. Did I love him? Yes. I called it a childish crush to protect myself. When Ba... Joined Mama and A-Niang... I knew not only could I take another sect leader as my husband, but I could not have any weakness. That is why I pushed you to be as strong as you are. You are my weakness, but you can protect yourself. I have my regrets... All I wish is to ensure you do not have to live with yours."

#cheng qing ling #mdzs #cql #the untamed #lan xichen #mo dao zhu shi #nie mingjue #nielan

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three--rings · 4 years

Text

Temptation’s Mask, part 19

Masterpost Here.

Okay, well here is the promised next part. This is Part 1 of 2 for this scene, and by popular vote, it ends right before the sex really gets going. So you only have yourselves to blame. Or at least the people who responded to my post. I still wouldn’t call this part SFW, though.

For the prompt: “I want you to be rough with me, please leave marks on my skin” but that doesn’t happen until the second half...so consider it a teaser.

---

After their night together they aren’t able to see each other for several days, to Lan Wangji’s disappointment. They exchange messages several times a day, but they’re both busy, and soon it’s their usual night for an online session. But since their conversation last week and everything that’d gone on over the weekend, Lan Wangji isn’t expecting to have any more cam chats. What would be the point, now that they are…together? The thought still feels dangerous, as if the miracle of Wei Wuxian would disappear if he examined it too closely, thought about it too much. And yet he can’t help dwelling on the memory of having Wei Ying in his bed, spread open for him, underneath him, begging for his touch.

So he’s not expecting it when he receives a text from Wei Wuxian that afternoon, asking if he’s free for their normal time. He mentally discards the reports he’d tentatively planned to read and replies in the affirmative. He certainly wouldn’t mind getting to see his…lover? Boyfriend? They haven’t placed a label on it yet. Lan Wangji doesn’t care what they call themselves. So long as he can call Wei Ying his, at least in his heart.

So 9PM finds him in front of his computer, wearing comfortable lounge pants and a simple undershirt. He is waiting for a notification from Wei Wuxian, when to his surprise his landline phone rings.

He doesn’t ever use that number. No business associates have it. Essentially it serves only as a way for the odd telemarketer to reach him, and an intercom to the front lobby of the apartment building. He considers ignoring it, but the ringing is abrasive and so he stands and heads for the kitchen.

“Yes?” he answers.

“Hi!” The voice on the other end is a bit breathless and causes Lan Wangji’s heart to skip a beat. Wei Ying!

“Wei Ying?” How is he on this line?

“Buzz me up!” The bright tone lowers as if the next part is confidential, “Hurry, your security guy is staring.”

“You’re here!?” Lan Wangji feels as if the gears of his mind are grinding slowly. Wei Ying laughs, delightful and joyous.

“Yes! Now let me up!” Lan Wangji enters the code to authorize the elevator door to open and hangs up the phone. His heart beats rapidly in his throat. He looks down at himself, suddenly feeling under-dressed. Which should be absurd, since he was planning for Wei Wuxian to see him like this over the internet, but somehow, it’s different in person.

He looks around the kitchen with a touch of desperation, sure he should have prepared something. He mentally shakes his head at himself, but it doesn’t help him to calm. He opens the fridge. There’s no alcohol chilling, no white wine in the specialized tray. He can serve Wei Wuxian red wine. He has several bottles in his pantry. He noted the name of what Wei Wuxian ordered for himself at dinner and had purchased three bottles of it. Should he open one? Wine needs to breathe, he’s heard such a thing.

The polite chime of his doorbell shakes him from his indecision. He fumbles slightly with the locks before finally getting the door open. Standing there, wearing a huge grin, is Wei Ying. He’s wearing make-up, not as much as he normally does when he cams, but enough to be noticeable. His eyes are heavily lined with black and something shimmery. And his lips are red, perfect. Lan Wangji lets his eyes pass over the rest of his form, but he’s wrapped in a long, black coat which gives no indication of what he might be wearing beneath.

“Hi, gege,” Wei Wuxian says in a sulty voice. He strikes a pose with one hand on his hip and winks at him. “You going to let me in?”

Taking a deep breath, Lan Wangji backs up and clears the way. Wei Wuxian enters the apartment swiftly, brushing past him with a heavy tread. Looking down, Lan Wangji sees some thick-soled shiny, black combat boots showing under the edge of the coat. They seem familiar and he remembers that he saw him wear them in a stream once. If they’re the same ones.

Wei Wuxian drops a black backpack to the floor by the wall as he enters the living room. Hurriedly, Lan Wangji locks the door behind him and follows.

“Surprised?” asks Wei Ying, turning around with a giant grin.

“…yes.” He nods. His subdued response doesn’t phase Wei Wuxian at all. He continues to grin like a smug cat, his eyes sparkling.

“Good! Cause there’s more.” And with that Wei Ying begins rapidly unbuttoning the front of his coat. Beneath it, Lan Wangji can tell quickly, he’s not wearing any actual clothing. Just lingerie: fishnet and straps and satin in his signature red and black. Lan Wangji’s mouth goes dry. A feeling of divine blessing flows over him, gratitude filling him for an instant, that he could ever be so fortunate.

Wei Ying lets his coat fall to the floor, giving him a look at his full outfit. It’s nominally decent, in that his skin is mostly covered by something. The black patent-leather boots that Lan Wangji had glimpsed come all the way up to his knees, laced and buckled securely. Above those, he is wearing stockings with wide lace bands at the top encircling his thighs. Red garters are clipped to those, stretched over a pair of black satin panties that accommodate his bulge nicely. Above the underwear he’s wearing a fishnet shirt, with a harness of sorts made of bright red straps criss-crossing over his pecs. He’s gorgeous and sexy and smiling at him so invitingly…Lan Wangji takes an unconscious step forward.

“Do you like it?” Wei Wuxian grins up at him. His eyes sparkle with mischief and satisfaction and promise.

“Mn,” he replies as he closes the distance between them. But Wei Ying dances backwards out of his reach. Lan Wangji frowns, and tries to approach again. Once again the other man laughs and backs up, skirting the furniture gracefully. Only once they cross the threshold, Wei Ying still leading, does Lan Wangji realize they’ve been headed to his bedroom. And his bed, which waits in the dim light, neatly made. Wei Ying finally stops, the backs of his legs against the bed. He waits for Lan Wangji to catch him. Which he does, trying to wrap his arms firmly around his mischievous lover to keep him from escaping.

But escape doesn’t seem to be his object any longer, and Wei Ying submits himself to a deep, probing kiss. Lan Wangji gets lost in the feel of it, the taste and pleasure of it after several days apart. And then he’s being turned, Wei Wuxian taking advantage of his distraction to spin them both so that Lan Wangji has his back to the bed. And he leans forward, his weight pushing them off balance, both of them toppling to the mattress.

Lan Wangji has the breath knocked from him for a moment as they untangle their more awkwardly placed extremities. They wind up with Lan Wangji flat on his back, Wei Wuxian a warm weight on top of him— propped up on one arm and grinning proudly. Lan Wangji can’t be annoyed at this, despite how self-satisfied his lover looks. Having Wei Ying’s body on top of his is never a hardship. He reaches up and grabs onto the back of his neck, pulling him down into a kiss. Wei Wuxian is all eagerness, yielding and responsive. When they have to break off the kiss to gasp for air, Wei Ying moves his attention to Lan Wangji’s neck. He kisses and sucks and licks his way down that sensitive column until he reaches his chest, pulling the front of his robe open to expose his bare skin underneath.

“Mmm, yeah…” he sighs as he sets to working his way over what feels like almost every inch of his chest, sucking at his nipples, licking across his abs, sucking a mark into the softer flesh of his stomach. By this time Lan Wangji is clenching all of his muscles, not wanting his lover to ever stop, but also nearly ready to explode with the need to grab, to pull— for his turn to uncover and worship Wei Ying. Perhaps Wei Wuxian can sense his impatience, because he sits back, straddling Lan Wangji’s thighs. His lips are glossy with saliva and though his lipstick remains, the edges look slightly blurred. When Lan Wangji looks down his own body, he can see faint traces of red left as evidence of where the other’s lips have lingered. It makes his pulse beat faster.

“Lan Zhan,” says Wei Ying, in a tone that is amused and also sounds like he’s trying to draw Lan Wangji’s attention back to himself. He obeys, focusing back on his lover’s face, though he nearly gets distracted by the bare skin in the gap between Wei Wuxian’s stockings and his underwear, the thighs that currently are pressed tightly around his own legs. Wei Wuxian drags both hands down Lan Wangji’s chest, his fingertips skating over his skin, teasing his nipples, making him break out in goosebumps. “Lan Zhan…are you going to ask me what I want tonight?”

Lan Wangji’s mouth is dry with wanting. He nods. The smile on Wei Ying’s face, which hasn’t ever really left, sharpens into something almost predatory. “Good. I was hoping you were.” His voice is low, smooth, teasing. It’s the voice that means serious business during his streams. “Because you know what I want?” Wei Ying waits. His fingers continue to tease lightly against the skin of his stomach. Lan Wangji’s hips unconsciously lift up, seeking friction, more stimulation.

Pushing past the physical distraction, he manages to respond, “What?”

Wei Ying’s smile widens like he’s done something impressive. “I want this,” he says, his hand coming to rest heavily along the bulge of Lan Wangji’s rock hard cock. He inhales harshly. The hand over his cock squeezes, not gently, kneading him through the thin fabric of his pajama pants. Lan Wangji feels entirely at Wei Wuxian’s mercy, at his service, all his attention held in that one elegant hand with black-painted nails. Wei Ying leans forward, more of his weight bearing down through his hand onto his cock. “I want this inside me.”

Lan Wangji gives a full-body shudder as the words hit. There’s only one word that thrums through him in response: yes. He pants, leaning forward himself, shoulders coming off the mattress, curling up towards his Wei Ying. Yes, please, please, he thinks, all of him burning with the need of it, body and heart and mind in sync.

“Lan Zhan?” asks Wei Wuxian and only then does he realize he hasn’t answered out loud.

“Yes,” he says fervently.

“Yes?”

“Yes, please.”

---

The second half is written. I’m planning to post it tomorrow, but I have dnd tomorrow evening so it will probably be about 24 hours from now. And now, I was promised screaming so don’t hold back.

#mdzs #wangxian #the untamed #camboy au #temptation's mask #my fiction #lemon #long post for mobile

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gusu-emilu · 4 years

Text

Cantatio: Chapter One

Ships: Lan Zhan / Wei Ying (POV Lan Zhan)

Summary: Lan Zhan and Wei Ying romp around the Cloud Recesses and bother each other.

“Well…it’s just that…” Wei Wuxian leaned toward Lan Xichen and lowered his voice. “I don’t think Second Young Master Lan likes me very much.”

Lan Wangji furrowed his brow. At least this boy understood the position he was in. This was exactly what Lan Wangji wanted to hear.

Lan Xichen smiled. “Then perhaps you should win his favor, and he might give you a lighter punishment.”

Cloud Recesses Academy AU, Rated T - read on AO3

Ch. 2 > | chapter list

Three years ago, Lan Wangji watched his older brother pass under this stony white arch and disappear into the mist of the Cloud Recesses. He was proud of his brother for attending the most prestigious cultivation academy in the land, the only school to bridge every major sect. Yet there had also been a tug of envy, buried within Lan Wangji’s juvenile heart just like the reclusive Cloud Recesses Academy was tucked away in the mountain fog.

Of course, Lan Wangji was well trained in quelling his mind, and that bit of envy had been quickly overtaken by anticipation—anticipation for this day. Today, Lan Wangji would watch Lan Xichen pass under the arch once more, and this time he would be following. He would be a student at the Cloud Recesses Cultivation Academy.

Not that Lan Wangji was unfamiliar with the Cloud Recesses. He grew up on the outskirts of Caiyi Town in the valley below, from which the Cloud Recesses was only a short hike up the mountain. Although its elegant architecture was not visible from Caiyi Town, its spiritual energy overflowed into the riverside village, granting it a tranquil sense of security. Lan Wangji and his brother absorbed this tranquility until it ran through their blood. In Caiyi Town, they lived to a perfect schedule. They spent their mornings meditating at the rocky banks of the river, their days drilling swordsmanship through thick heat or gentle snow, and their nights memorizing the teachings of the Lan Sect.

Every three months, their uncle Lan Qiren came down to evaluate their cultivation skills. Although children were rarely allowed in the Cloud Recesses, a few of Lan Qiren’s visits ended with a treat: an overnight stay at the secluded academy…and a strenuous exercise for the Twin Jades to grow their discipline.

Yes, Lan Wangji knew the Cloud Recesses. But he had never entered the Cloud Recesses while classes were in session. This was his opportunity to fully refine his skills, and he even had the privilege of being selected as a head disciple for his class. He was ready to work his hardest and bring honor to the Gusu Lan Clan.

He lifted his chin and strode under the arch. Immediately, the air tasted crisper and fresher. Pebbles shifted under his feet with a faint, satisfying crunch as he glided forward to his brother’s side. The lush vegetation and bubbling creek filled Lan Wangji with—

“Wei Wuxian!”

“Pig head!”

“A-Xian! A-Cheng!”

Lan Wangji winced. He had never heard such chafing voices, not even from the butcher’s wife in Caiyi Market, never mind in the sacred Cloud Recesses. Lan Wangji turned around, and his brother mirrored his fluid motion.

A group of disciples in purple robes was headed toward the gate, led by two bickering boys and a dainty-framed girl. The slimmer boy’s side bangs flew into his face as he swerved out of reach of the other boy, who nearly tripped while trying to snatch something from the slender boy’s hands.

Lan Wangji clenched his jaw. These were the Yunmeng Jiang Clan’s best disciples?

“Give me my chestnuts back!”

“Give what back? You practically ate them all already!”

“Yeah, because they’re mine!”

The chestnut thief dodged with a jump that propelled him onto the rock wall lining the path, swiped the tip of his sword across the rocks, then leapt down out of the other boy’s reach. A shower of pebbles pelted the enraged boy left underneath.

The trick was not impressive or clever in the slightest.

The young woman folded her hands in front of her and shook her head with a tired smile. “A-Xian, that was unnecessary. And A-Cheng, just let him have a few, we’re about to enter the Cloud Recesses.”

“Haha! You heard her, Jiang Cheng! They’re mine now!” The slimmer boy cocked his head and stuck out his tongue.

“Wei Wuxian!”

Lan Wangji could not bear to watch this level of impertinence any longer. The Cloud Recesses was a hallowed enclave of the Gusu Lan Clan that Lan Wangji felt honored to enter, and these boys were fighting over snacks without an ounce of respect for their surroundings.

Lan Wangji lunged forward. In a flash, he was behind the two unruly Jiang Clan disciples, trapping each of their forearms in his iron grip just as they were about to smack each other.

“Shouting and fighting without permission are prohibited in the Cloud Recesses,” Lan Wangji said.

Wei Wuxian wriggled his arm, but Lan Wangji only tightened his grip. If he had not been staring directly ahead, Lan Wangji would have noticed that this young man possessed a wild, intrusive handsomeness that Lan Wangji resented very much. But he did not notice that.

Wei Wuxian gave Lan Wangji a bewildered smirk, looked him up and down, then glanced over his shoulder at the other disciples.

“Who’s this grandpa, eh? We aren’t even in the Cloud Recesses yet! How can you already try to impose these rules on us?”

Lan Wangji felt a spark of heat in his cheeks. He tightened his grip even more.

Grandpa?

“Ow, ow, ow! Easy, easy!”

“Be quiet,” said Jiang Cheng through clenched teeth.

“I believe we can trust them to follow decorum once they are properly in the Cloud Recesses. Wangji, you may let our friends go,” Lan Xichen said. He had finally sauntered down the dirt path to meet them. He bowed to the Jiang Sect disciples.

Lan Wangji released the two boys’ wrists and stood shoulder-to-shoulder with his brother for another round of bows. He hoped for one more round to sift the air and cool the hotness surrounding his face—or was he imagining that?—but Lan Xichen remained still.

“Young Master Lan, Second Young Master Lan. My apologies for our misdemeanor,” Jiang Cheng said.

“Not a problem, Young Master Jiang. I am glad that the journey to Gusu has not been too tiring for you and your peers,” Lan Xichen said with a hint of mirth. He then turned to the young woman and smiled. “Lady Jiang, it is a pleasure to see you again. Madam Jin informed me that you would be assisting her for your graduate studies. Congratulations.”

“Thank you, Young Master Lan. I’m looking forward to hearing about your upcoming apprenticeship in Ancient Texts,” Jiang Yanli said.

“I’d be happy to fill you in,” Lan Xichen said. He tilted his head. “Where are Clan Leader Jiang and Madam Yu?”

As Lan Wangji listened, his gaze drifted over to trace the fidgeting outline of Wei Wuxian’s shoulder. The boy was rocking back and forth with his hands clasped behind his back and his chin held much too high. His heels carved crescent-shaped dents in the dirt.

Lan Wangji snapped his focus back to the conversation.

“My father came across an old acquaintance in Caiyi Town and wanted to pay respects to the man’s family, so my parents sent us ahead to get settled in the Cloud Recesses,” Jiang Yanli replied.

“Alright, then. We look forward to their arrival. Follow me,” Lan Xichen said.

Lan Wangji and Lan Xichen walked side-by-side to guide the Jiang Sect disciples, who thankfully were now silent, to pass through the gate once more.

A cracking sound jolted through Lan Wangji’s ears. He listened to the footsteps behind him to calculate the opportune moment, then whipped around and caught Wei Wuxian mid-bite. The side of his mouth was chomping down to break the shell of a chestnut. With a huff, Lan Wangji snatched the chestnut out of Wei Wuxian’s mouth with one clean swipe.

“Hey! So rude! You can’t just take my food like that! What if you broke my teeth?”

“No eating in the nature reserves of the Cloud Recesses.”

“I’m not in the!—oh wait. Hehe, oops.” Wei Wuxian craned his head to peer up at the white arch that lay just inches behind him, then flashed Lan Wangji a coquettish grin. “Okay, you caught me. I’ll listen to you, Lan Er-Gege.”

“Boring.”

Lan Wangji set his jaw and rejoined his brother at the front of the troupe as they followed the winding path through the misty forest.

In a low voice behind him, Wei Wuxian said, “See that, Jiang Cheng? In one move, he did what you’d tried to do forty times! You’ll have to be careful around here.”

“You should be careful around me, because unlike the Lans, I would knock your teeth out.”

Lan Wangji ignored the smirk he could sense growing on his brother’s face, just as easily as he ignored Wei Wuxian’s gleeful chuckling. And with even greater ease, he ignored that he had no idea what to do with the soggy chestnut in his clenched fist.

Littering was prohibited in the Cloud Recesses.

* * *

Lan Wangji had hoped that he and his brother would be the first to arrive. Lan Wangji wanted nothing more than a few hours to himself in the Cloud Recesses at its quietest and emptiest, with free time to peruse the rare collection of its legendary library. However, not only had the noisy Jiang Clan disciples arrived at the same time, but the Nie Clan and a few other Lan disciples were also waiting for them in the main courtyard. There were more clans yet to arrive. It looked like for the rest of the day Lan Wangji would be stuck in a perpetual cycle of meeting-and-greeting. If only Lan Xichen hadn’t spent such a long time chatting with residents of Caiyi Town or brushing his hair, then they could have arrived in the early morning.

Still, just seeing the exquisite design of the Cloud Recesses brightened Lan Wangji’s mood. The white gravel paths were accentuated with prim patches of grass and interlocked with dark, polished wooden pathways. The buildings had elegantly curved roofs and a perfect balance between rich mahogany panels, sleek ivory walls, and embroidered sky-blue banners. Past the roofs were foggy outlines of peaks adorned in greenery. The air was clean and crisp. It was as if the mountains and clouds themselves had been carved just to house this academy.

After a short detour to dispose of the disgusting chestnut, Lan Wangji joined his brother at the center of the courtyard, where the Lan Clan, Jiang Clan, and Nie Clan disciples stood with their luggage in a scattered circle in front of the Main Hall.

Everyone performed the customary greetings. Lan Wangji noticed that two people were missing.

Lan Xichen also realized at least half as much. “Mingjue, where is Huaisang?”

“Eh? He was just here,” Nie Mingjue said as he swung his head around. “HUAISANG!”

Numerous disciples flinched at Nie Mingjue’s baritone roar, including the usually stoic Nie Clan members.

Since last year, Nie Mingjue had been the leader of the Qinghe Nie Clan. Even before he assumed this position of authority, every disciple feared his hot temper, brute strength, and giant saber Baxia. Because Lan Wangji’s older brother happened to be best friends with Nie Mingjue, Lan Wangji was familiar enough with the clan leader to not fear him outright, although he did prefer to keep him an arm’s length away. But other than Nie Mingjue’s inability to use an inside voice, Lan Wangji thought he was a man of integrity.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry! Brother, I’m over here!” a voice called from the woods.

Nie Huaisang emerged from behind a tree at the edge of the clearing. His hands fiddled with a closed fan.

“Ge, I was just introducing myself to Young Master Wei, but he accidentally scared my bird out of my robes…now he’s helping me catch it,” he said.

“WHO?! BIRD IN YOUR ROBES?!”

“Wei—"

“Me! It’s me! I’m helping him!” chimed someone above Nie Huaisang.

Wei Wuxian was halfway up a tree, climbing toward a yellow-bellied songbird perched at the edge of a branch. He grinned and raised a hand to wave as he announced himself.

“Wei Wuxian, get down from there!” Jiang Cheng said.

“HUAISANG! You’re chasing after a bird instead of greeting the other disciples? I thought I told you not to bring that lousy pet!” Nie Mingjue yelled.

“Don’t worry, I’ve almost got it!” Wei Wuxian said.

How many rules had Wei Wuxian broken in the last fifteen minutes? And now four people were shouting in the Cloud Recesses! Lan Wangji felt his stomach drop as he realized that the amount of trouble this boy caused seemed to increase exponentially.

Wei Wuxian leapt several feet upward and landed on the bird’s branch. The bird startled and flew away, but Wei Wuxian pounced into the air with outstretched arms and soared right over the disciples’ heads in pursuit of the bird.

“Don’t hurt her!” Nie Huaisang cried.

Wei Wuxian cupped his hands around the bird, flipped four times in midair, and landed at the foot of the Main Hall. His back knocked into a potted penjing on the walkway. He looked over his shoulder in concern at the small wobbling tree, but it remained in place.

Several disciples chattered in amazement. Even Lan Wangji almost gasped.

Wei Wuxian cheered with triumph and raised the bird above his head, purposely making a show out of his success.

“Hahaha! I hope I didn’t scare you all!”

He was agile, charming, and arrogant. He acted as if the world were made to bend to his will, and the world was so delighted to do so that it would risk snapping itself in half as long as Wei Wuxian commanded it to.

Thoroughly intolerable. Someone had to keep the world from falling into pieces at his feet. Lan Wangji had come to study in a civilized learning environment, thank you very much.

Wei Wuxian started sprinting over to Nie Huaisang, but Lan Wangji blocked his path.

“Running is prohibited. Climbing trees is prohibited. Performing stunts without permission, celebrating shamelessly, and disrupting walkway decorations are prohibited.”

“Then how was I supposed to catch the bird?”

“Catching birds is pro—”

“Wangji, Young Master Wei.” Lan Xichen placed a firm hand on each of their shoulders. “Let’s make our first priority returning the bird to Huaisang. After that, we can discuss appropriate behavior for the Cloud Recesses.”

Lan Xichen glanced at Nie Mingjue. He was in the midst of loudly scolding Nie Huaisang, who wavered between cowering from his brother’s shouts and standing on his toes to peer at Wei Wuxian. Both of these actions further enraged Nie Mingjue.

Lan Xichen sighed. “Even the best of us could use a reminder of proper conduct sometimes. Young Master Wei, come with me.”

Lan Wangji’s shoulders tensed. He knew his brother was prone to being lenient. When his uncle returned to the Cloud Recesses from the outskirts of the reserves, things would be handled differently.

They approached the Nie brothers. Wei Wuxian walked with a sharp, insolent swagger that swung his annoying black ponytail and its red ribbon behind his back. Yet his hands cradled the bird with a delicate tenderness.

“Mingjue.”

“What is it, Xichen?”

“It is up to you whether Huaisang can keep the bird, but at least allow him to receive it from Young Master Wei. And please, lower your voice.”

Nie Mingjue exhaled and let go of his brother’s arm.

“Is she okay?” Nie Huaisang asked.

“She’s perfect! Not a scratch, just like I promised.” Wei Wuxian slid one hand to the side to reveal the songbird’s confused face.

“Oh, thank you so much, Wei-xiong! You’re too awesome!” Nie Huaisang held the bird to his cheek, where they both cooed to each other.

“Next time, let’s just use birdfeed instead of heroics,” Lan Xichen said.

“Understood,” Wei Wuxian said with a grin.

Then he skipped away to join the rest of the disciples, brushing past Lan Wangji without a second thought.

“Hold on, Young Master Wei,” Lan Xichen said.

“Hm?”

“As Head Disciple Wangji pointed out, you’ve broken quite a few rules of the Cloud Recesses.”

Wei Wuxian rubbed his nose. “Ah, yes, about that. I didn’t really know the rules in the first place. I was just trying to help! I won’t be punished for doing a good deed just because I broke a few rules I’d never even heard of, will I?”

Lan Wangji glared at him. “Gusu Lan Clan rules were assigned reading.”

“Second Young Master Lan…” Nie Huaisang said, “no one really does assigned reading before school starts.”

“Huaisang!” Nie Mingjue snapped. “You told me you read—”

“E-E-Except me! Except me! No one reads them but me and Lan Wangji, right?”

Lan Wangji stared at the white pebbles on the ground.

“So, if that’s settled then, I’ll leave you all be,” Wei Wuxian said.

“Not yet.” Lan Xichen smiled. “Wangji, since you have already confronted Young Master Wei for his infractions, and you are head disciple, I will let you decide the consequences. Young Master Wei may be informed of his punishment tonight.”

Wei Wuxian’s mouth dropped. “Him? He gets to pick? Isn’t that a little unfair?”

“Why would you think so?” Lan Xichen asked.

“Well…it’s just that…” Wei Wuxian leaned toward Lan Xichen and lowered his voice. “I don’t think Second Young Master Lan likes me very much.”

Lan Wangji furrowed his brow. At least this boy understood the position he was in. This was exactly what Lan Wangji wanted to hear.

Lan Xichen smiled. “Then perhaps you should win his favor, and he might give you a lighter punishment.”

And with that, Lan Xichen strode away with Nie Mingjue, leaving Wei Wuxian with a quivering lip and Lan Wangji with a bitter taste in his mouth.

* * *

To Lan Wangji’s relief, Wei Wuxian had only stayed behind long enough to bother him with a few shameless remarks, then hurried over to the rest of the disciples with Nie Huaisang. They welcomed Wei Wuxian with praises and patted him on the back. Except Jiang Cheng, who rolled his eyes and overpowered the others’ voices to berate him instead.

Lan Wangji stood at a distance from the rest of the disciples, motionless and dignified. He emptied his mind by meditating and connecting with the atmosphere of the Cloud Recesses. With each breath of the cool air he drew in, he felt greater harmony with the placid lake of spiritual energy that surrounded him. However, his attention kept being pulled toward the crowd of disciples. Not to that energetic disciple from the Jiang Clan that he expected to scurry over at any moment to ‘win his favor,’ but for some reason didn’t. Not him. Just the group in general.

He changed strategies and passed the time by making mental lists of his upcoming studies instead. This proved to be a more effective distraction.

While Lan Wangji was preoccupied with noting the auxiliary founding texts of the other clans that he might have to read, Wei Wuxian popped up at his side, startling Lan Wangji—at least, as much as Lan Wangji could be startled.

“Lan Er-Gege! Whatcha up to?”

Lan Wangji flicked his gaze away to stare at the farthest point from Wei Wuxian.

So the troublemaker had come to kiss up to him after all.

“You know, we haven’t properly introduced ourselves yet! I’m surnamed Wei, my name is Ying, and my courtesy name is Wuxian,” he said as he bounced to the other side of Lan Wangji.

Lan Wangji stiffened his shoulders and averted his eyes once more.

“What about you?”

“Surname is Lan. Name is Zhan. Courtesy name is Wangji.”

“Wow, you’re bluer* than the sky! Lan Zhan, that’s a cool name! Can I call you that? Lan Zhan? You can call me Wei Ying too, no need for formalities between us.” (*蓝 “lan” and 湛 “zhan” both mean “blue”)

An unwelcome warmth filled Lan Wangji at the sound of his birth name.

“No.”

“Ah, alright, Lan Er-Gege. You know, I’ve heard about you before. You’re the strongest swordsman of our generation! My shijie graduated from here with your brother, she said that Lan Xichen was amazing at swordfighting, and that he told her that you were even better.”

Wei Wuxian winked and rested his arm on Lan Wangji’s shoulder. Lan Wangji flinched at the touch.

“That must mean you’re the number one swordfighter here!”

Wei Wuxian flashed a bright smile. He placed his hand on his hip and gazed at Lan Wangji with grey eyes that twinkled with admiration. It seemed genuine.

“Best or worst is inconsequential. Ranking one’s skills is vanity,” Lan Wangji said.

“I suppose you’re right. Then I look forward to sparring with you in class, since it won’t matter to you when I beat you!”

This caught Lan Wangji off guard.

“…You are trained in swordsmanship of the Jiang Clan,” he said.

“That’s right!”

“Then you cannot win.”

With long, quick strides, Lan Wangji set off toward his brother.

“Hey! Hold up!”

Lan Xichen had been spending his time fluttering around the courtyard to chat with each of the disciples, and therefore Lan Wangji had not been able to use him as a shield for incoming social interaction. Now his brother had finally settled in one place next to Nie Mingjue, just in time for Lan Wangji to escape Wei Wuxian’s pursuits.

However, Wei Wuxian was fast, and he soon cut in front of Lan Wangji.

“Hey! What makes you so sure? Isn’t it a little vain to underestimate an opponent?”

If Lan Wangji was being honest, as he visualized Wei Wuxian’s previous acrobatics, he had to admit that it may be a tough fight. But he was indeed sure that he would win. He understood Jiang Clan sword techniques. Moreover, Wei Wuxian had proven that he was impulsive—a characteristic easily exploited in battle.

“An arrow shot at the right crack can topple a fortress.”

Wei Wuxian scoffed. “So I see you’re the type who likes to speak in riddles. I have riddles too! I’ll share some fun ones with you."

Upon realizing that hiding behind his brother would not be enough to shake this pest, Lan Wangji sharply pivoted his feet and speedwalked toward another side of the courtyard.

Wei Wuxian panted as he kept pace. “Okay, listen up! A baby is perched in a tall building of the palace grounds, overlooking an arched entrance. I am not that baby, and I have no connection to any palaces, yet this scene has great meaning to me. What is it?”

Lan Wangji was offended by how nonsensical and self-centered this riddle was. He changed his walking direction again. The milky white gravel crunched under their feet in a brisk rhythm as Wei Wuxian closed the distance between them.

“Can’t figure it out?”

“Hmph.”

“Come on, Lan Zhan, you know the answer. Just say it!”

“Your name*.” (*魏 “wei” is just a surname but it can also mean “a tower over a palace gateway,” 婴 “ying” means “infant”)

“That’s right! I’m Wei Ying! Okay, another one. A muddy puddle of water became transparent. At the same time, a poor man learned that he no longer had to pay his debts. The same thing that happened to the water also happened to the man’s debts. So, what happened to the water?”

This play on words barely required a thought to solve.

“It was cleared.”

Wei Wuxian gasped. “Lan Zhan! Is it true what you’ve said? ‘Your name,’ ‘it was cleared.’ My name is cleared! So I’m off the hook for breaking the rules? Oh, Lan Zhan, thank you so much! I knew you wouldn’t punish me!”

A nerve twinged in Lan Wangji’s neck as heat rushed to his cheeks. He disliked Wei Wuxian more with every second.

“Boring.”

“Hahahaha!”

“Wei Wuxian! Stop bothering Second Young Master Lan!” Jiang Cheng scolded as he punched Wei Wuxian’s arm.

“Ow! Okay, okay, I’ll come with you!”

Lan Wangji would have told Jiang Cheng that hitting was prohibited in the Cloud Recesses, but he felt that in this particular instance it was justified. Finally safe from Wei Wuxian, he marched over to his brother and Nie Mingjue.

“Hello, Wangji. Have you been enjoying your conversations with your classmates?” Lan Xichen said with a flicker of amusement.

“Brother.”

“Yes?”

“You can assign Wei Wuxian’s punishment.”

The corners of Lan Xichen’s mouth twitched upward. “I think it would be more fitting for you to choose. You will be spending more time with your classmates than I will. It will be your responsibility as head disciple to keep them in line when your seniors are occupied.”

“You are not occupied.”

“I will be soon. Just think of it as practice.”

Before Lan Wangji could reply, a hum of voices came from behind him.

“The Jin Clan has arrived,” Nie Mingjue said.

The golden-robed Jin Clan was the largest, wealthiest, and most regal of the clans, but also the most conceited. Even Lan Wangji thought so. The Jin Clan disciples approached the edge of the courtyard from the wilderness path, headed by Clan Leader Jin Guangshan and his wife Madam Jin. Surprisingly, the leaders of the Jiang Clan—Jiang Fengmian and Madam Yu—were also at the front of the troupe. They must have run into each other in Caiyi Town. Knowing that Madam Yu and Madam Jin were such dear friends that they arranged a marriage between their children, it made sense that the two women would insist on traveling up the mountain together upon seeing each other.

The stern-browed Madam Yu and the full-figured Madam Jin were deep in animated conversation. Their colorful robes and clinking jewelry rivaled each other in opulence. Jin Guangshan stood in front of them with a haughty expression, pointedly ignoring whatever his wife was discussing behind him.

In line after the two women were Jiang Fengmian and the Jin Clan Leader’s son, Jin Zixuan. Jiang Fengmian appeared to be making an awkward attempt at conversation with the young heir, who nodded and mouthed a few terse replies with even greater awkwardness.

With an air of intimidation, Madam Yu and Madam Jin turned their heads over their shoulders periodically to check that the two men were still talking to each other.

Once the Jin Clan arrived at the center of the courtyard, another round of obligatory greetings rippled through the crowd. Lan Wangji let himself fall into autopilot as he bowed, bowed, and bowed. At least Lan Xichen was at his side to redirect any personal inquiries.

At his other side, he noticed Jin Zixuan greeting Jiang Yanli, whose face looked as white as bone. Jin Zixuan opened his mouth to say something, then jerked away without speaking and approached a Lan Clan disciple.

“How is he a blabber-mouthed peacock all the fucking time, but when it comes to Shijie, his fiancé, he doesn’t even speak to her?” Wei Wuxian said.

“Because he’s a dick,” Jiang Cheng grumbled as he crossed his arms.

Lan Wangji shot them a glare that said, Swearing is prohibited.

Wei Wuxian grimaced and gave a sheepish wave. “Well, looks like our tally of offenses just increased.”

Lan Wangji turned his attention back to Lan Xichen, where a short, timid young man bowed before him. Lan Xichen clasped the boy’s hands to intercept his bow.

“Guangyao, it’s been too long.”

“Xichen-ge, I’m glad to see you,” Jin Guangyao said.

Meng Yao—now known as Jin Guangyao—was the bastard son of Jin Guangshan. For his entire childhood, he had been scorned by his father and treated as a laughingstock, until in a turn of fate he was taken in by the Nie Clan, had his reputation built up by Nie Mingjue, and then was recruited to the Jin Clan by the father who had once kicked him down the stairs. Lan Xichen had met Jin Guangyao during his visits to Nie Mingjue and had always viewed him fondly. Since Jin Guangyao moved from Qinghe to Lanling last year as a servant to Jin Zixuan, Lan Xichen had complained that he missed seeing the young man.

Lan Xichen and Jin Guangyao smiled warmly at each other.

“Oh my god!” Nie Huaisang cried.

Some disciples looked at him with concern, but many ignored him. Everyone who knew Nie Huaisang was used to him causing a scene.

“What is it?” Wei Wuxian asked.

With wide eyes, Nie Huaisang pointed a shaky finger toward the forest pathway and whispered, “It's the Wens.”

* * *

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this chapter, you can be a supportive sibling like Jiang Yanli by liking, reblogging, and visiting me on AO3! New chapters posted every Monday on AO3 and Tuesday on Tumblr.

Ch. 2 > | chapter list

#mdzs fanfic #mdzs fanfiction #the untamed fanfic #wangxian #wangxian fanfiction #mdzs #the untamed #cql #lan wangji #wei wuxian #lan zhan #wei ying #cantatio #the untamed fanfiction #wangxian fanfic #emilu talks

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tracer85s · 4 years

Text

MDZS fics i treasure (1)

parts 1, 2, 3

and here comes the summertime by ribena

[mature, lan wangji/wei wuxian, song lan/xiao xingchen, 72k, complete]

i’m a sucker for university/college aus and this one hits me JUST RIGHT. the angst, the slowburn, the softness and nostalgia plus it’s enemies to lovers !! basically this is just wangxian finding a home in each other

Anginal Equivalents by fakeplasticlily

[explicit, lan wangji/wei wuxian, 23k, complete]

medical residents lwj and wwx? my life is complete. the mutual pining since childhood is 10/10 and wangxian.mp3 has also entered the chat with lwj playing the violin HNNG. just read it, and the rest of fakeplasticlily’s works bc they’re amazing) do yourself a favour

asymptotic by chinxe

[teen and up, lan wangji/wei wuxian, 26k, complete]

one of the first fics i have ever read when i joined the fandom, A TRUE CLASSIC. lwj meets ghost wwx through inquiry and they just... pine because it’s wangxian. angsty with major family feels but the ending is super cute

between the lines by jywait

[general, lan wangji/wei wuxian, 19k, complete]

wangxian falling in love through a video game called grandmaster of demonic cultivation. this was just so cute i had to rec it, i think it meshes the modern setting and canon themes well and the PINING dear lord

Butterfly effect by Verse

[general, lan wangji/wei wuxian, hua cheng/xie lian, 986, complete]

short but still good. hua cheng and xie lian raise wwx I’M SCREAMING

concessions to love by besanii

[teen and up, lan wangji/wei wuxian, 29k, complete]

wwx runs away to escape his arranged marriage with lwj and falls in love with a gusu lan cultivator who is most definitely NOT his fiancée (lol jk it’s lwj, pls wwx is so dumb he’s supposed to run away from lwj but runs straight into him instead and falls in love). some good old pining, miscommunication, and hurt/comfort. i re-read this all the time it’s so cute please :’)

critical path analysis by chinxe

[teen and up, lan wangji/wei wuxian, 14k, complete]

DETECTIVES WANGXIAN. that is all. oh and of course oblivious wwx as per usual, i found this very lighthearted and funny

grow by cafecliche

[teen and up, lan wangji/wei wuxian, 14k, complete]

wwx gets de-aged so the juniors and lwj take care of him. cute but also angsty bc of wwx’s childhood and the family feels is just 10/10. this made me feel so many emotions, i even teared up a little bit during one scene. just please read it, it’s so good

how do i forgive myself (for losing so much time) by thunderwear

[mature, lan wangji/wei wuxian, 26k, complete]

lxc de-ages himself intentionally post-canon, wwx and lwj take care of him together so lots of domestic fluff (and angst) and YUNMENG BROS RECONCILIATION !!!

How to propose to the love of your life in one simple step by CloudyInk

[general, lan wangji/wei wuxian, 6k, complete]

some good old very public confession between prince lwj and general wwx *SQUEAL* it’s like that scene in ep 42 where they literally confess in front of all the cultivators trying to kill them (hm i should rewatch that)

it goes like this by moonsteps

[teen and up, lan wangji/wei wuxian, jiang wanyin/nie huaisang, 15k, complete]

MODERN SOULMATES WWX AND LWJ SET IN UNIVERSITY WHAT MORE CAN YOU ASK FOR !! basically people have timers which stops when they meet their soulmate. wwx’s timer stops... but he has no idea who his soulmate is bc he wasn’t paying attention to his timer,,, just more oblivious wwx.

like a saturated sunrise by moonsteps

[teen and up, lan wangji/wei wuxian, 26k, complete]

and they were ROOMMATES. please i love this one: the fluff, the angst, and they have cake every month to celebrate can it get any cuter ?!?!

like wildflowers (we grow) by moonsteps

[teen and up, lan wangji/wei wuxian, 80k, complete]

TEACHERS LWJ AND WWX. SINGLE PARENT LWJ. WWX IS SIZHUI’S TEACHER. SCREAMS. this is my comfort fic. the fluff, the slow burn, it’s just so SOFT i want to cry. all of moonsteps’ work is my comfort fic at this point honestly

Looking at You Always, All Ways by Keysmashed

[teen and up, lan wangji/wei wuxian, 29k, complete]

time travel fix-it where lwj time travels back to when he first meets wwx in cloud recesses. guys this is so SWEET AND FLUFFY but there’s some mild-ish angst with lwj :(

love - all by vastlyunknown

[mature, lan wangji/wei wuxian, 18k, complete]

listen to me, RIVAL TENNIS PLAYERS!WANGXIAN. modern setting, some hints of dads wangxian, angst, and hurt/comfort i mean this baby has it all !! and the ending is so cute it reminds me of the notting hill scene, JUST READ IT PLEASE

Mourning Robes by Starlight1395

[teen and up, lan wangji/wei wuxian, 17k, complete]

yes. i love arranged marriage wangxian. what about it? okay but this one hits you in the heart in regards to wwx trying to fit into the lan clan. VERY ANGSTY but the juniors and wangxian make it all okay at the end i swear !

#wangxian #mo dao zu shi #mdzs fic rec #fic rec #lan wangji #wei wuxian

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archivingfanfiction · 3 years

Text

Little Lion Man

by lonely_beez

Wei Wuxian never intended to get pregnant at the Qishan indoctrination, now he has a baby and no IDEA what to do...

This is not a fix it, so please be aware. It is sad and will remain sad and you will be sad.

all the angst in the canon now with more angst of a/b/o baby yuan!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/27947675/chapters/68445548

#omega wei ying #wei ying x lan zhan #wei wuxian x lan wangji #fanfic #fic recs #adorable #a/b/o universe #babies #mpreg #family feels #new angst trope has entered the chat #angst

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katemarley · 4 years

Text

Priority One

Fandom: Mó Dào Zǔ Shī /Chén Qíng Lìng/The Untamed Pairing: XiYao Characters: Niè Huáisāng, Jīn Guāngyáo, Lán Xīchén, Niè Míngjué Rating: T

Summary: Whenever the vice president of the student union has a task for the union’s secretary, it becomes his top priority. The president’s younger brother notices.

Also available on AO3 (see the link in my profile).

Note: The student rep system in this story turned out vaguely British, I suppose… Anyway, MDZS is set in a fantasy world, so why not keep this Modern AU in sort of a fantasy setting, too?

“Oh, hello, Huaisang-xiong. Break between lectures?” Meng Yao entered the room with a cardboard box on his hip and his characteristically dimpled smile on his face. The trousers and waistcoat he wore were cheap but elegant, Nie Huaisang noticed with a practised eye as he looked up from his place on the sofa.

Huaisang was painting a fan for the theatre group. There was never enough time to unpack art supplies and get something done in between university work and performances, but his big brother was the president of the student union. That allowed him to use the union’s office rooms, leave his art supplies on the table next to the sofa and work in between lectures.

“Yep. Making a prop for our next performance.” He turned the fan in his hand, showing the ferns and flowers he had drawn. Meng Yao put the box on his desk and stepped closer to admire the decorations in more detail.

“Beautiful!” he exclaimed. His dimples became even deeper. “Seeing this, I’m sure all the props you have made will be extraordinary once again!” Huaisang acknowledged the flattery with a smile. Meng Yao’s words didn’t mean much. They were often casually flattering.

Returning to his desk, Meng Yao started to unpack the contents of the cardboard box.

“Forgive me if I don’t stay here to chat,” he said, “but I’ve only got an hour in between lectures, too. I needed to pick up these posters from the university print shop and will try to put up as many as I can now.” He took one of the posters from the box and unfolded it so Huaisang could see what was on it.

“Oh, it’s the next performance of Lan Xichen’s ensemble!” Huaisang exclaimed. What he didn’t say was Now I know why you’re so eager to sacrifice your off-work hours to some student union-related task again. He was in the union’s offices often enough to be familiar with Meng Yao’s schedule, and squeezing in an hour of extra work in between lectures was not his normal way of handling things. Meng Yao’s usual planning was too meticulous for last-minute troubleshooting to even become necessary.

“The printing process took a little longer than estimated.” Meng Yao rolled his eyes. “I already filed a complaint with the administration, but it’s likely nothing will come of it. Anyway...” The polite smile was back on his face, dimples included. “I’m off now. Will you be here this afternoon, too?” During your regular work hours, Huaisang added in his head.

“I guess so,” he said out loud. “This isn’t the only prop I need to make.” He waved Meng Yao goodbye with the painted fan. “See you later then!”

“You put up all the posters already?” Lan Xichen exclaimed incredulously. “How—” He paused and a frown appeared on his handsome face. “Wait. A-Yao! You didn’t skip lunch in the canteen for this, did you?”

“Don’t worry, Vice President,” said Meng Yao with a smile that was just that tiny bit wider when he looked at Lan Xichen. “I had lunch.”

Huaisang looked up from the forest he was painting on canvas. He knew he was the only one in the room, apart from Meng Yao, who had seen the box of cheap noodles in the bin. His brother was sitting behind his desk, too focused on his work to notice such things, and Lan Xichen was too honest to realise that his question about “lunch in the canteen” and Meng Yao’s answer didn’t necessarily match. Meng Yao, Huaisang had noticed, was a master in the art of not exactly telling the truth while simultaneously avoiding an outright lie.

“Still,” Lan Xichen insisted, “you shouldn’t have done this all on your own. Putting up posters is so much easier with a second person and I wouldn’t have minded helping you. After all, these were the posters for my ensemble.”

That, Huaisang thought, is exactly why he did this for you. Don’t you see how he’s looking at you? That soft glow in his eyes?

But Lan Xichen, the ever chivalrous, seemed to be oblivious to acts of chivalry done for him. And that, Huaisang pondered, even though it had been him who had started this by being pointedly kind to Meng Yao where others were not.

It had gone around that Meng Yao was the illegitimate son of the university president, Jin Guangshan, as soon as he had started his first year. Huaisang had only heard it from his brother, but there seemed to have been some nasty attempts at bullying Meng Yao, mostly by those of the rich folks who tended to look down on scholarship boys anyway. These attempts had all failed spectacularly, however, after Lan Xichen had made a point of sitting next to Meng Yao during lunch … and after Nie Mingjue had yelled at the bullies, telling them he’d break every single bone in their bodies if they didn’t stop. (That, Huaisang was sure, was also the reason why no one had ever attempted to bully him. His brother could be quite scary if he towered over you and yelled.)

From that moment on, Meng Yao had been part of the in-group. Some people were still talking badly about him, but never within earshot of his protectors, the two most popular students at the university. And when Nie Mingjue and Lan Xichen had run for the student council, the ever well-organized and hard-working Meng Yao had managed their election campaign. When they had won, it had only been natural for him to apply for the position of student union secretary – and get chosen not out of familiarity or favour, but because he was actually the applicant with the most credentials.

Meng Yao treated both Nie Mingjue and Lan Xichen with the utmost respect bordering on devotion, but with Lan Xichen, there were certain … differences.

Unlike his younger brother Lan Wangji, who was Huaisang’s age and seemed to hate any sort of physical contact, Lan Xichen would occasionally put his hand on Nie Mingjue or Meng Yao’s arm when he was looking over their shoulder at a computer screen. It was almost imperceptible, but whenever he did that with Meng Yao, Meng Yao would lean into the touch.

The moment when Huaisang had become convinced Meng Yao had a thing for Lan Xichen had come when he had seen them practice the guqin together. Lan Xichen had put his hand over Meng Yao’s to show him some finger movement, and the flush on Meng Yao’s face had been unmistakable… Had Lan Xichen looked up in that moment, he would have seen it, too. But he had only had eyes for the instrument.

While Huaisang had been pondering over his observations, the conversation between Lan Xichen and Meng Yao had moved on.

“…need to consider how to arrange the seating this time,” Meng Yao pointed out. “There are some new staff members – I sent them an invitation already, but since I’m not in the arts department, I don’t know their exact hierarchy and who gets along with whom.”

“Don’t worry, A-Yao!” Lan Xichen gave him a reassuring pat on the back – and again, Meng Yao leaned into the touch. “We can look over the seating arrangement for the invited guests later this afternoon.” Lan Xichen took his phone to check his schedule. “Well, early evening. There’s a meeting I have to attend at five, but after that, I’m free. It shouldn’t be more than an hour.”

“That would be perfect,” Meng Yao said with another dimpled smile. “I’m just going to wait for you in the office then. There’s still plenty of work to do anyway.

“Speaking of meetings,” Nie Mingjue made his presence known for the first time during their conversation. “Xichen-xiong, shouldn’t you be on your way to the master class now?”

“Oh dear…” Lan Xichen glanced at his phone again. “Thank you, Mingjue-xiong. You’re quite right.” He grabbed the bag with his xiao in it and rushed out of the office.

“As for you…” Nie Mingjue stood and strode to Meng Yao. “You shouldn’t say ‘yes’ to each and every task someone gives you,” he scolded. “The number of your overtime hours is already higher than what we can pay you. Take a day off, Meng-xiong.”

“Thank you, President,” Meng Yao said with a polite bow. “I will follow your advice. However, please allow me to help Vice President as promised.”

“You already confirmed the appointment.” Nie Mingjue nodded. “That means you must keep it.” Then he glared at Meng Yao. “Still, stop taking on so many chores. You don’t have to prove to us that you’re capable. We know that.” Saying this, he gave Meng Yao a friendly pat on the shoulder that almost brought him to his knees. Huaisang winced in sympathy. He knew how that pat felt.

Huaisang kept Meng Yao company as he waited for Lan Xichen’s meeting to be over. It hadn’t been a conscious decision – it was just that it took very long to thread the beads for a tiara on the metal frame he had made for this purpose.

“Huaisang-xiong, don’t you think it’s enough for today?” Meng Yao asked after Huaisang had yawned for the second time. “I think you should go home and rest. You’ve made a lot of props on one single day.”

Look who’s talking, thought Huaisang, but when he yawned for the third time, he admitted to himself that Meng Yao was right.

“Fine,” he said, almost yawning once again. “I’ll leave everything as it is, alright? Let me just collect the spare beads and put them back in the box, and then I’ll be off.” He gestured at the beads he had taken out of their box because he had expected to use them up within the next couple of minutes.

“Sounds good to me.” Meng Yao nodded. “Meanwhile I’m going to check if Vice President’s meeting is still going on. It’s past six already. Have a nice evening if we don’t see each other anymore today!”

“You, too!” Huaisang waved again, this time without a fan in his hand.

When Meng Yao had left the room, Huaisang picked up the beads he had put on the table, throwing them back in the box. And then it happened. He might have been too inattentive or too tired – in any case, the box tipped and most of its contents spilled across the room.

Oh no, not that!

Huaisang accepted his fate with an acquiescent sigh and kneeled down on the floor, picking up the spilled beads and putting them back in the box.

It took a while for him to clean the linoleum floor as best as he could – Meng Yao didn’t return in the meantime – but just as he thought he had finally found all the beads, he noticed one of them half hidden under the sofa. He pushed the sofa from the wall, collected the beads underneath, and pushed it back.

Then he realised that there might be even more beads under the roll cages beneath all three desks in the room. He checked them quickly – but then he noticed a bead that had found its way behind the partition that sectioned off the large printer and a small desk with a cutting machine, a punch, a stapler and scissors on it.

With a sigh, he took the bead box and checked under the small table. Sure enough, he found two beads and spotted another that had rolled in the gap between the floor and a part of the printer that didn’t carry its weight.

Huaisang was fishing for the stray bead when the door opened. He lifted his head to tell Meng Yao about his mishap – and immediately ducked. Then he had to look up again or, he thought, he would forever doubt what he was seeing with his own eyes.

Meng Yao had pulled Lan Xichen inside and was now pushing him against the door, kissing him with what Huaisang could only describe as hunger. He was standing on tiptoe, fingers digging in Lan Xichen’s shirt both to pull him close and to make him stoop enough for Meng Yao to reach up to him.

Lan Xichen’s eyes were closed and he responded to the fierce kiss with an expression of reverent abandon. One of his hands was wrapped around Meng Yao’s shoulders, keeping him close; the other still held the bag with his xiao.

After a while, Meng Yao broke the kiss. Huaisang ducked again, mind whirring. He had thought Meng Yao’s yearning was unrequited – or unfulfilled, at the least – but this…

“My apologies,” he heard Meng Yao whisper. “I … just couldn’t wait any longer. Being close to you without being able to touch you is torture.”

Lan Xichen gave a quiet laugh. Then there was another lapse in the conversation.

Huaisang peered over the partition – and ducked his head once more. Now Lan Xichen was kissing Meng Yao. He had put his xiao on the nearest desk – Meng Yao’s, as it happened – and was holding Meng Yao’s chin in his fingers. From this angle, Huaisang couldn’t see Lan Xichen’s face, but he had never seen Meng Yao with such an open and vulnerable expression.

Huaisang clenched his fists, staring at the floor with burning cheeks. He had to find a face-saving way to get out of this situation. Nothing of this was meant for him to see. Especially this expression … Meng Yao would kill him if he knew Huaisang had seen it.

“Now, A-Yao,” Lan Xichen said in a teasing tone, “we’ve still got work to do, don’t we?”

“As if I could ever forget!” Meng Yao replied with false indignation. Lan Xichen laughed.

When there was another silence, Huaisang dared to take another look over the partition.

They were sitting on the sofa now, far too close to leave any room for doubt about their relationship. Lan Xichen had wrapped an arm around Meng Yao’s shoulders, who leaned into him, a tablet in his hands.

Meng Yao’s tablet.

Huaisang remembered his surprise when Meng Yao had come to the office with that tablet the day after his birthday. His brother had told him he and Lan Xichen had gifted Meng Yao the economics textbooks he needed for his finals that year, so the appearance of the tablet had been mysterious… Until now, that was. If the tablet was a special present for Lan Xichen’s boyfriend, it all made sense.

The following conversation was incomprehensible to Huaisang because he didn’t see the tablet screen. There were murmured sentences like “How about seating them here?” – “No, I think over there would be better.” – “Then what do we do with… Ah, yes, good idea!” and “No, no, better place another person in between…” Huaisang inferred that Meng Yao had a digital seating chart on his tablet and probably a list of the invited guests as well. He made a mental note to ask Meng Yao about it for the theatre performance … if he made it out of the office without embarrassing himself.

“…and that’s it!” he heard Meng Yao exclaim in pleasant surprise. “That’s really it, isn’t it?”

“It’s the best we can do,” Lan Xichen replied. “We’re finally done, so…” There was a hint of uncertainty in his tone. “Will you come to mine tonight? Stay with me?”

“We shouldn’t do this too often…” Meng Yao said uncomfortably. There was a short pause. “Yes – yes, I will. And believe me, I want to – I’d love to stay with you forever! It’s just that…” He paused again.

“I know,” Lan Xichen said in the gentlest tone. “You want to gain the recognition of your father and everyone around you all by yourself, and I admire you for that attitude. Still…” His tone changed again, turning emphatic and almost pleading. “Please let me help you at least a little bit. Let us help you – Mingjue-xiong and me.”

“You’re already helping so much,” Meng Yao replied. His tone was gentle and fragile as glass. “But you must understand … If people knew about you and me, they would accuse me of sleeping my way up to the top of the social ladder. They say that about my mother, too. I don’t want…” His voice cracked. “I couldn’t bear it if they talked about you as if I was only using you. Them talking badly about me – I can take that. But not about you. Never about you.”

“Oh, A-Yao…” There was a rustle of fabric, and Huaisang didn’t need to be a genius to figure out that Lan Xichen was taking Meng Yao in his arms. “I still think we should tell the Nie brothers about us,” Lan Xichen said. “They won’t spill our secret.”

Huaisang’s heart started to pound in his chest at the mention of his own name.

“I,” said Meng Yao in a muffled voice. “I don’t want to burden them with the knowledge. I’m already selfish as it is, because…” There was another pause. Then Meng Yao whispered: “Because I want you for myself. The sensible thing would have been to keep my distance from you, but I can’t. I can’t…” His voice cracked.

“And that is a good thing,” Lan Xichen said earnestly, “because I couldn’t keep my distance from you either.” He paused. When he spoke again, his voice was raw and vulnerable. “Now let me be selfish, A-Yao: I want you. I’ve wanted you since I first laid eyes upon you, carrying on as if it was nothing even though everyone was saying such bad things about you. I would be an unhappy man if you hadn’t reciprocated my feelings.”

Huaisang inwardly rolled his eyes. He hadn’t known Lan Xichen could be this soppy.

When there was another pause, Huaisang didn’t check what was going on. He was glad about his decision when he heard someone moan – he forbade himself to think about who it was – and was about to put his fingers in his ears when he heard Lan Xichen laugh.

“If we continue like this,” he said, “we’re not going to make it to my flat today.”

“That would be a pity,” Meng Yao said in an equally amused tone. “Your bed is far more comfortable than the sofa.”

“Then take my hand!” Lan Xichen laughed again. “Let’s go home!”

“Let’s go,” Meng Yao repeated. There was a timbre to his voice, a slight waver. “Home,” he continued eventually.

At last, Huaisang heard the door open and close again. He didn’t move.

He was … shocked. Yes, that was the right word for it. Meng Yao’s love for Lan Xichen … it was so obvious because Lan Xichen was the only person he treated differently. Lan Xichen’s love for Meng Yao, however … it was literally hidden in plain sight, Huaisang decided. It didn’t attract anyone’s attention because Lan Xichen was kind to everyone. That was what had fooled him. But now he knew, and he was bursting with that knowledge.

Please rethink your decision, Meng Yao, he pleaded inwardly. I don’t think I can keep that secret from my brother for long.

#xiyao #lan xichen #jin guangyao #the untamed #mo dao zu shi #nie huaisang #nie mingjue #mdzs #cql #mdzs fanfiction #cql fanfiction #fanfiction #my fanfiction #katemarley

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rosethornewrites · 4 years

Text

Fic: this body yet survives, ch. 3

Relationship: Lán Zhàn | Lán Wàngjī/Wèi Yīng | Wèi Wúxiàn

Characters: Lán Zhàn | Lán Wàngjī, Lán Huàn | Lán Xīchén, Lán Qǐrén, Wèi Yīng | Wèi Wúxiàn, Jiāng Chéng | Jiāng Wǎnyín, Jiāng Yànlí

Additional Tags: No War AU, Recovery, Trauma, Dissociation, Courtship, Courting Rituals

Summary: Lan Wangji and Wei Ying go to Caiyi, but have an unexpected encounter.

Notes: See end

Parts 1 & 2

Chapter 1 | 2

AO3 link

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Wangji soaked in Wei Ying’s good cheer, how he flitted around the mountain path on the way to Caiyi to examine anything that caught his eye. He had to discourage him from capturing another rabbit for the herd in Cloud Recesses; after all, they would have to go back if he was successful, and they had not yet reached their destination.

“On the way home, then,” Wei Ying said, his grin as wide as those during his days as a student, and Wangji’s heart clenched in joy to see it.

Caiyi was bustling, the fishermen hawking the morning catch, and Wei Ying held back a little at the chaos of it, staying closer to Wangji, reminding him that he was still fragile, still easily overwhelmed. This was the first trip to town since he had truly started to heal, after all.

Wangji had a mental map of the town and the places he wished to take him, purchases he wished to make; a gaun, scented oil for his hair, spicy foods—whatever Wei Ying wanted, he would have—and the personal additions to the betrothal gifts he would present to the Jiang siblings.

As hesitant as he seemed to enter the crowd, Wei Ying was also fascinated by the fish hawking, curious about the tubs of live catch. He stopped to watch a turtle for a bit, fascinated by the markings on the top of its neck that resembled eyes. It was a colorful specimen, with a dark brown shell and distinctive markings.

“Do you want it?” Wangji asked softly.

Wei Ying smiled at him, but it didn’t reach his eyes.

“Where would I put it? The Cold Spring? Your uncle would kick me out.”

Wangji frowned, troubled that Wei Ying still thought, even jokingly, he would be discarded so easily, that his place was so tenuous. He had to remind himself that shufu and xiongzhang would clarify that today, that he would soon realize the Cloud Recesses was his home.

“There is a small pond outside the jingshi,” he offered.

“‘Pets are forbidden,’ Lan Zhan. You don’t need more creatures to take care of.”

He wondered if they were speaking of the turtle anymore.

“Not a pet,” Wangji clarified. “It is a wild thing, and could live to old age there, protected.”

As he hoped Wei Ying himself would in the jingshi with him—not as a caged creature, but as his beloved, loved as he deserved.

Wei Ying was quiet for a moment, watching the turtle, but finally nodded.

“Let’s rescue it, then,” he murmured, his voice rough. “So it won’t end up someone’s dinner tonight.”

Turtles, after all, were symbols of longevity, power, and tenacity. In some ways, they represented what Wei Ying had endured and survived. He had endured so much, had defeated the water he had been left in to die. Turtles were seen as powerful bringers of luck and serenity, both things Wei Ying could use. Perhaps this encounter, their purchase of it, was auspicious.

He stayed close as Wangji purchased it and smiled more sincerely when he handed him a covered basket with the turtle secured inside.

“We will release it in the pond when we return home,” he told him softly, mentally adding the bookseller to his list of places to go so they could find a book on turtles.

They wandered toward the market, Wei Ying moving carefully so as not to jostle the turtle. The bookseller was first, and they perused the shelves together, quickly finding a suitable book.

Wangji noticed Wei Ying’s eyes lingering on a book of poetry and pulled it from the shelf, curious. It was a collection of the poems of Ruan Ji and Ji Kang, two notable sages in a time of turbulent wars, and rumored lovers. He could see the blush on Wei Ying’s face, and felt his own ears heat as he recalled that one of the two had written homoerotic poetry; he wondered if this volume contained them.

He bought both books, slipping them in his qiankun pouch. They could read them together.

At the stall with scented oils for hair, Wei Ying seemed lost at the number of options, and looked to Wangji for help.

“You can try smaller amounts of different ones until you find one you like,” Wangji said softly, “but this might fit you.”

He had the vendor mix a small sample of orange and cinnamon for Wei Ying to smell and was pleased to see the scents seemed to relax him. Wangji was happy to purchase it.

Wei Ying, he knew, often let his hair go, not taking care of it. He would take charge of it personally, he decided, perhaps enlisting Jiang Yanli’s help while they were courting, when it would be a bit inappropriate for him to do so.

Wangji noticed a stall of colorful candies and stopped to buy Wei Ying tanghulu. This seller, he knew, removed the hawthorn seeds and replaced them with red bean paste before glazing them with sugar.

He took a bite when Wei Ying offered, enjoying the sweet and tart mixtures, the crunch followed by the meatiness of the hawthorn and the soft cream of the bean paste. Wei Ying happily munched on the rest on the way to the next stall.

Before they reach it, Wei Ying froze, the mostly-eaten tanghulu falling from his fingers to the ground. Wangji followed his gaze and found Jin Zixuan at a nearby stall, along with Madam Jin—who, he recalled, was the sworn sister of Madam Yu.

Wangji could hear Wei Ying’s breath, how it had started to speed up, and recognized he was in the beginning of a panic attack. He turned to face him, moving Wei Ying so he could still see her in his peripheral vision—he already knew she was there, and could panic worse if he couldn’t see her, but he tried to encourage him to focus on him.

“I am here,” Wangji told him. “You are not alone.”

Wei Ying managed a nod, taking deep breaths and pressing one thumb to the opposite palm, something the mind healers had taught him to help him find calm.

Jin Zixuan approached, Madam Jin hanging back. He bowed and Wangji bowed back, noting that Wei Ying did the same, shaking slightly.

“Lan-er-gongzi, Wei-gongzi, we intended to visit Cloud Recesses. I didn’t realize you would be in Caiyi.”

He sounded apologetic, and Wangji knew he could see Wei Ying struggling.

“Wei-gongzi, my mother has come to speak with you.”

A panicked noise, so soft Wangji was sure only he heard it, escaped Wei Ying, his breath stuttering again. His knuckles were white, his hand clenched around the basket handle.

Madam Jin was looking at Wei Ying with an expression that bordered on pity, he realized.

“I apologize for your ill treatment at the hands of my former sworn sister, Wei Wuxian,” she said bluntly, bowing low to him. “And for the discomfort my presence has brought you.”

Confusion washed over Wei Ying’s face at her words, but he also seemed to focus, coming out of his panic.

“Former?” he asked, his voice hoarse.

Madam Jin nodded.

“I could not continue being her sworn sister after what she did to you, her own ward. It was inexcusable.”

Wei Ying looked lost, almost dizzy, and Wangji placed a hand on his upper arm in case he fell.

“Over something as small as talismans to change the color of the tea,” Jin Zixuan muttered.

Wangji felt Wei Ying tremble, the memory tied up in his near-death. He had stuck talismans to the undersides of each sect leader’s teapot, and the tea had come out in the sect’s main color—Jiang Fengmian’s, violet; Nie Mingjue’s, deep green; xiongzhang’s, a pale blue; Wen Ruohan’s, crimson; Jin Guangshan’s, golden. Even minor sect leaders’ teapots had transformed the color of their tea.

The talismans had changed nothing else about the tea, neither flavor nor quality, and had been well-received by the sect leaders when Wei Ying had explained the tea was safe.

“Just an extra treat for the discussion conference,” he had said with a respectful bow and a cheeky smile.

Madam Yu had ordered him out, stalking after him, and it had been the last time anyone had seen Wei Ying until Jiang Yanli found him so close to death.

“I revealed lax security, she said,” Wei Ying murmured, his voice hollow.

He was shaking more obviously now, and Wangji moved closer as he swayed. They had never spoken of the incident, and he had no idea how Wei Ying might react.

“That’s ridiculous!” Jin Zixuan muttered, the anger in his voice surprising. “Of course you had access as head disciple.”

His comment seemed to jolt Wei Ying out of what Wangji had feared might be the beginning of a fugue, and he started at the Jin heir blankly, like he hadn’t expected a defense from him.

Wangji approved of his anger, befitting one who would be Wei Ying’s brother in law. Madam Yu’s actions had clearly led to a change in Jin Zixuan for the better. He could remember, vaguely, the young man trying to comfort Jiang Yanli as she sobbed, telling her that her brother was strong, he would be okay. Wangji had been far more focused on Wei Ying, leaving him only to help the Jiang siblings pack his belongings and expedite their departure, and only in the care of xiongzhang.

“We are bringing up bad memories,” Madam Jin realized, her voice regretful. “I actually wish to commission you for your talisman work, Wei Wuxian.”

Wei Ying swallowed hard, clearly making an effort to stay present mentally.

“What kind of talisman, Jin-furen?”

She offered him a gentle smile.

“I’d prefer not to discuss it in the street. Let me treat you to lunch, and we can get a private room and chat. With Lan Wangji and my son present, of course.”

Wangji realized she was trying to assure Wei Ying she did not wish him ill, would not seek to harm him, and perhaps was letting him know as well.

Wei Ying gave a jerky nod, glancing at him as though for reassurance. He decided to lead the way to the restaurant he had intended to take him to for lunch, a place known for spicy fare but with dishes that suited his own palate. It happened to have private dining rooms, which Wangji had intended for them anyway, so Wei Ying would have a break from people.

The move put the Jins behind them, he realized when Wei Ying clung to his arm, but the walk was blessedly short. Madam Jin was kind enough to lead the way up the stairs, clearly recognizing Wei Ying’s distress. He was thankful that she also allowed Wei Ying to decide where in the smaller room to sit, deferring to him in a way that most people of her station would not.

Though her kindness was not unselfish—she did, after all, want something—he appreciated it nonetheless. He led Wei Ying to a seat around the table, where he could see the door, a window nearby to facilitate escape if needed, both things that might make him feel more secure.

Wangji worried Wei Ying might eat little, a behavior that manifested when he was stressed, but he could do nothing to alleviate that.

“May we speak before we eat?” Madam Jin asked after settling across from them with her son. “If you decide against taking the commission, I will still purchase lunch. It is the least I can do given your willingness to speak with me.”

Wei Ying nodded again, grasping Wangji’s hand under the table. Wangji squeezed gently, trying to reassure him.

“As you may be aware, my husband has… dallied,” she began.

Jin Zixuan’s face turned a bit sour at this, and Wangji was reminded of Wei Ying’s question to him when he asked for permission to court Jiang Yanli.

“Given… recent events, I have decided it would be prudent to find the children resulting from his indiscretions.”

Wei Ying’s gaze sharpened a bit.

“For what purpose?” he asked softly.

Wangji squeezed his hand again, knowing his thoughts; Wei Ying would not wish to create anything that could result in deaths.

Madam Jin smiled, as though the question pleased her.

“To protect them. I will not legitimize them, but I want them and their mothers, who were perhaps lied to or coerced, or whose freedom needs to be bought from brothels, to be safe and cared for. The children should have the opportunity to learn to cultivate and have a relationship with my son as their half-brother, along with their other half-siblings.”

She sighed softly.

“All involved are innocents, and I could stay bitter as I once was and wish them ill, but after… what was done to you, I don’t wish to be that person. The world could mistake that behavior as acceptable, as there have been few consequences. I want to offer an alternative.”

Wei Ying seemed to need to take several breaths, his hand tightening on Wangji’s for a moment, before he could nod. Wangji could see a suspicious sheen to his eyes, and realized Wei Ying was overcome by Madam Jin’s desire to make right somehow, to force something positive to result from what was done to him.

“One to find, and one to also test those who step forth with claims?” Wei Ying asked after he had calmed.

Madam Jin let out a breath, looking relieved, almost as though she had been concerned Wei Ying would not be up to the task, perhaps still too traumatized.

Not long ago, he would have been, Wangji had to admit. But he was getting better, and he had never stopped inventing new talismans.

“Yes, that would also be useful,” she said. “Thank you.”

“There would likely be a limit on distance,” Wei Ying told her. “But I’d have to experiment with options and prototypes.”

Madam Jin set a large bag of gold in front of him, and Wei Ying’s eyes widened.

“This is a down payment. I understand it may take time, and there is no rush. I will reimburse you for any materials needed, if that becomes an issue.”

Wei Ying looked up at her, frowning slightly.

“I will need your husband’s blood,” he said. “Unless you want me to focus on the sibling aspect, and then I could use Jin Zixuan’s.”

Wangji realized this was Wei Ying’s way of asking if this was being done secretly, without Sect Leader Jin’s knowledge.

Madam Jin actually laughed softly.

“Oh, you are bright,” she said, her voice full of delighted praise. “My husband is still claiming innocence, and is not willing to take part in this project. My son has kindly offered to help instead.”

Wangji tried not to be concerned about the implications that this could be against Sect Leader Jin’s wishes. Wei Ying was under the protection of Gusu Lan now, and he would defend him personally if need be.

Jin Zixuan pulled out a pouch and slid it gently across the table.

“Several vials of my blood. I can provide more if needed.”

Wei Ying looked momentarily shocked at the implied level of trust—the amount of blood needed to harm someone via a curse or hex was miniscule, after all—and attempted a smile.

“I’ll try not to waste any.”

Jin Zixuan only nodded, and Wangji took the bag to slip into his qiankun pouch. Wei Ying handed him the pouch of money without looking at him, the exchange made less simple by the fact that Wei Ying didn’t let go of his hand under the table. Though his grip wasn’t tight, Wangji refused to break it, refused to let go when he needed him.

Madam Jin slid the door open to let the servers know they were ready for tea.

Wei Ying’s gaze had gone a bit glassy, though his eyes were moving as he thought, perhaps distracted by ideas for the talisman. Wangji resolved to ensure Wei Ying ordered and ate plenty, knowing he might need prompting. He knew they would return to Cloud Recesses following this, without a replacement for Wei Ying’s broken guan, and without additional gifts for the Jiang siblings. Wei Ying would need time to rest before meeting with shufu and xiongzhang, particularly after the strain he had just endured.

They would release the turtle in front of the jingshi together, and Wangji would play the guqin for him while he rested. Then, following the meeting, wherein Wei Ying’s status would be clarified, Wangji would seek permission from his siblings to court him.

He ran his thumb across the back of Wei Ying’s hand, and was relieved when the act was returned, when the glassiness left his eyes and he looked at him with a tired-looking smile.

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I didn’t really expect the turtle thing, but it happened kind of organically as I was bringing Caiyi to life. Wei Ying is going to name it Tang 汤, meaning ‘soup,’ because of course he is. This particular turtle is a species native to mountainous regions of southern China, the four-eyed turtle. And now I need to do more research on turtles because of course I do.

In addition to Wei Ying’s recovery, this fic is also in part about the cultivation world’s reaction to what Yu Ziyuan did, in that there are some consequences. Hence Madam Jin dissolving their sworn sisterhood and commissioning Wei Ying. Her decision to take in and ensure Jin Guangshan’s bastards and mistresses are cared for is partially out of spite for what her former sworn sister did, but is also the result of some soul-searching on her part. This is not Madam Jin assuming that Wei Ying is Jiang Fengmian’s secret bastard son, btw.

As I’ve noted in other MDZS fics I’m writing, I like to explore how a point of change can cascade to change other things, so I am back on my bullshit. Also, I think this makes the third fic where I’ve referenced Ruan Ji and Ji Kang. I just bought a book of their translated poetry that’s supposed to be delivered next week.

#my fanfiction #the untamed #untamed fanfiction #mo dao zu shi #untamed fanfic #mdzs #mdzs fanfic #mdzs fanfiction #chen qing ling #CQL #cql fanfic #cql fanfiction #wei ying #wei wuxian #lan zhan #lan wangji #jin zixuan #madam jin

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