Jin Rulan (Jin Ling) (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
lastjinstanding) wrote2021-08-14 03:22 am
lastjinstanding) wrote2021-08-14 03:22 am
Brothel meme continued
Continued from here
Jin Ling had really hoped he'd have A-Yuan at his side for this, but he didn't blame the sweet man for being ill one bit. In fact, he really enjoyed holding him as they finished traveling up to Lotus Pier. He sends servants off the boat to arrange a discreet delivery of his ill and subdued guest to private chambers following Ling's disembark. He instructed only Fu Geming to carry A-Yuan with Liling.
Sadly, after that, he had to leave his pets in his servants care. Squaring his shoulders, he stepped onto the pier. He bowed humbly to all of his relatives and gave them each a proper greeting- or in Wei Wuxian's case, a cheeky one.
He was brought into the main hall and given the seat next to Jiang Cheng's throne. Wei Wuxian was seated beside him with Lan Wangji at the next seat. And yes, Wangji had been offered the throne but had chosen to stay at Wuxian's side. It was Jiang Cheng's wedding, after all.
Jin Ling is happy sitting to a nice cup of tea and some wine after a long day of travel with promise of dinner coming.
~~~
"Jin-Guniang, is the young master Zheng in this room?" A young, unfamiliar male voice asks. "I have some medicine I wish to offer if you'd announce me."
"Of course. Let me ask for you," Liling says in a warm tone. She knocks on Yuan's door and peeks in. She smiles when she sees him awake. She comes in and shuts the door behind her. "Zheng-gongzi? How are you feeling? A friend of Jin-zongzhu from the Lan Clan is here to offer you some medicine. Would you feel up to seeing him?"
Jin Ling had really hoped he'd have A-Yuan at his side for this, but he didn't blame the sweet man for being ill one bit. In fact, he really enjoyed holding him as they finished traveling up to Lotus Pier. He sends servants off the boat to arrange a discreet delivery of his ill and subdued guest to private chambers following Ling's disembark. He instructed only Fu Geming to carry A-Yuan with Liling.
Sadly, after that, he had to leave his pets in his servants care. Squaring his shoulders, he stepped onto the pier. He bowed humbly to all of his relatives and gave them each a proper greeting- or in Wei Wuxian's case, a cheeky one.
He was brought into the main hall and given the seat next to Jiang Cheng's throne. Wei Wuxian was seated beside him with Lan Wangji at the next seat. And yes, Wangji had been offered the throne but had chosen to stay at Wuxian's side. It was Jiang Cheng's wedding, after all.
Jin Ling is happy sitting to a nice cup of tea and some wine after a long day of travel with promise of dinner coming.
~~~
"Jin-Guniang, is the young master Zheng in this room?" A young, unfamiliar male voice asks. "I have some medicine I wish to offer if you'd announce me."
"Of course. Let me ask for you," Liling says in a warm tone. She knocks on Yuan's door and peeks in. She smiles when she sees him awake. She comes in and shuts the door behind her. "Zheng-gongzi? How are you feeling? A friend of Jin-zongzhu from the Lan Clan is here to offer you some medicine. Would you feel up to seeing him?"
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"Boy toy?" Zizhen snorts "Aren't they the same age?" Though he can see why Jin Ling might say that, Huaisang does act a lot younger than the rest of them, even though they're all around the same age and he's a sect leader. He can't deny the intrigue though - what is Jiang Cheng going back to Lotus Pier for, and why not take his guest? Why leave him here with his vulnerable nephew? (Not that he'll use that word out loud in front of Jin Ling)
"It's not that late I don't think." Zizhen says, glancing towards the window "I'll go see if I can find her." He wouldn't mind something to eat himself.
~~~
"Yes, of course," Yuan agrees, feeling the panic subside - nobody would expect him to take over before he's good and ready, and when he puts it in that perspective it seems a little more reasonable - he's got plenty of time to become worthy of such a thing, and that's if it even happens! Jingyi's right, Zewu Jun could have an heir of his own long before it ever gets to that point.
He claps a hand over his mouth at the comment about Zewu Jun and Jiang Cheng, though, stifling a laugh - a laugh that cuts off immediately when his father looks around. He gives his friend a quick, grateful look before speeding up a little to fall in step beside his father.
"Yes, a-die," he says softly "It's just there was a comment made that I... I hadn't considered and it surprised me."
He hesitates, suddenly uncertain if the whole situation has been read wrongly - but then Jingyi seemed so matter-of-fact about it, so he continues.
"About me being sect heir."
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"He acts like it.." He mutters. Okay fine, that hadn't been the right word. Huaisang was something. He didn't know what exactly.
He gets a really bad idea. "What about going and seeing if you can peek in Huaisang's guest room and if he's not there check Jiujiu's room too? Just.. see if you learn anything. You know even if you catch them doing anything he's not really going to hurt you. He loves me too much for that."
He might hurt Jin Ling, but not Zizhen.
~~~
Jingyi is pretty sure he's going to get some kind of punishment for that stupid joke, but it was worth it to get Sizhui to laugh. He'd been expecting some reaction, but he hadn't thought Hanguang Jun would overhear him. Oh well. Still, Jiang Cheng and Lan Xichen! Tee hee! It was better than Song Lan or Wen Ning! As wonderful as they were, they were corpses!
Lan Zhan is quiet for a few moments after Sizhui tells him what the problem is. He lightly puts a hand on his back, comfortingly. "Does this displease you?"
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Zizhen looks uncertain for a moment before deciding he would take this risk for the sake of his friend, and also because it sounded like fun. He nods
"I can say I was looking for one of them, if somebody finds me, I'll think up a question i wanted to ask." Even if it's a dumb question he's pretty sure they won't realise what he's actually up to. He isn't sure how much he'll be able to find out, but it's worth a try.
"Okay, I'll find Liling and go see what I can find out," he decides with a nod "I'll be back soon."
~~~
He's weirdly relieved that Lan Zhan doesn't just immediately tell him he has the wrong end of the stick totally, as intimidated as he is by the possibility he thinks being told that wasn't the case would feel like a rejection under the circumstances.
"Displease isn't really the right word... it's a surprise, I think, to me, and it's.. it's something I'm scared I'm not worthy of? But I want to be. I want to be good enough that I can be an heir you could all be proud of. I want to be worthy of the trust you've placed in me by giving me this sword."
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He waits until he leaves before shoving back the blankets on the bed and trying to scoot toward the edge. He has to figure out how to do this without anyone seeing him! Maybe before Zizhen even gets back.
~~~
Jiang Cheng has to check on a few things to prepare for his journey but it isn't long before he's returning to his suite. Food will be delivered as he doesn't have the interest to deal with the Jin elders tonight- particularly if he can have a special person's company instead. He might make more of an effort to behave when he gets back. Right now, he was going to enjoy his night. Although not too much, he knew Huaisang's ass was still sore!.. he was a little proud of that.
Upon entering his room, he sees the lovely man hasn't returned yet, so he changes into his night robes. He lounges on the couch with a glass of wine in hand and one on the table in front of him. He waits.
~~~
"There's nothing you aren't worthy of, my érzi." Lan Zhan states firmly.
The rest though, he takes some time to give thought on exactly how to answer. "I have no such worries. The fact that you do, proves we were wise to give it to you. Someone untrustworthy wouldn't be concerned with such things."
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While Zizhen is looking for Liling to ask for some food to be sent up, Huaisang is on his way to Jiang Cheng's quarters - carefully avoiding anybody else as he goes.
He makes it to the guest rooms the Nie sect leader is using and peeks inside, creeping in when he realises it's empty. He doesn't want to snoop around too much, but he can see a lot of new things that he thinks might be gifts (a lot of gifts), which is interesting. Since there's nothing else he can see that tells him anything, he sneaks back out again and goes to Jiang Cheng's rooms instead, hovering outside the doorway and trying to eavesdrop on what's happening inside.
Before he arrives there, though, Huaisang has already entered to find his lover already waiting with wine.
"A-Cheng," he smiles softly, picking up the second drink and joining the other man on the couch "I hope you weren't expecting anyone else." he adds mischievously.
~~~
Wei Wuxian is surprisingly quiet, just watching his husband talk to their son with a fond smile on his face. He can see how much Lan Zhan's approval means to A-Yuan, how well he's fitting in here already, and it warms his heart.
"Thank you for your trust in me, a-die. I won't let you down." Yuan says seriously.
"Of course you won't," Wuxian speaks then, grinning at both of them "You're the best son we could ever have hoped for."
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"There's no one else but you, my dear," he promises. His fingers curl in his hair affectionately. "I appreciate you watching out for Ling while I'm gone. It could be more challenging than I thought, unfortunately. The talisman my brother sent has done a brilliant job turning his condition around and he's back to his ornery, pain-in-the-ass self." He says this smiling, of course.
"I might need to leave a few of my men here to protect you," he teases.
~~~
Lan Zhan looks up at his husband and smiles.
Jingyi nearly trips. Whoa. That was the biggest smile he thinks he's ever seen on Hanguang Jun's face and he's not the only junior shocked to see it. Although only the first couple disciples can see it. They can't really hear what's being said but the look between their two elders is just.. there was no hiding that, especially with the little lantern in Lan Zhan's hand.
It reminds him again that no matter if Sizhui was a youthful indiscretion of his hero, he is Hanguang Jun's pride and joy. That alone means Jingyi's going to stand by him. The fact he's also really sweet and he loves him are just extras.
It's a while later that Jingyi moves closer to Wei Wuxian, on his opposite side from Hanguang Jun and tugs on his sleeve. "Wei-qianbei? How does one become sworn brothers?"
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Huaisang lets Jiang Cheng manoeuvre him where he wants him, settling in comfortably to kiss him as he enjoys the feel of a warm hand running on his bare thigh.
He laughs lightly at the comment.
"I'm very glad to hear he's doing better, my love," he says sincerely "don't worry, I will try and stay on his good side and my spies will keep him - and me - safe."
It's strange to actually admit out loud that he has spies, but he doesn't want to lie to Jiang Cheng, he wants to trust the other man with everything he is.
(He does not, however, point out that dealing with grumpy sect leaders is basically his speciality at this point, between Cheng and Mingjue)
Outside, Zizhen's eyes widen at the mention of spies, but so far he hasn't heard anything very incriminating, so he keeps listening.
~~~
Yuan remains beside his fathers for a little while, though he does want to walk with Jingyi and the others, he's just taking the time to appreciate his family and how much faith they have in him, just for a little while longer - then he'll drop back to be with the others. He notices when Jingyi approaches, but since he seems to want to talk to Wei Wuxian, he doesn't pry, and he tries not to listen in.
"Hmm? Sworn brothers?" Wuxian repeats, turning to look at the disciple "Well, really it's not very complicated, you swear an oath to one another in a ceremony, and then you do whatever you promise to do as part of the oath, so it's a little different for everyone. Why?"
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He should be more concerned than he is. He knows logically it's imperative they keep this a secret, but he has the most beautiful man in his lap and he finds himself tugging his belt loose instead. If he didn't know better, he'd say Huaisang he him enchanted under a spell.
"Is there anything you'd like me to bring you from Lotus Pier, Little Nightingale?"
~~~
Hanguang Jun lets Yuan walk beside him as long as he'd like. If he stays too long, he'll hand him the little paper lantern to carry while he continues to quietly guide Apple. For a beast that use to get his husband such a headache, the donkey is amazingly well behaved with him.
"Is there a particular kind of ceremony or just one you make up?" He asks. "What kind of things should you promise to do?" He hesitates at the why. His gaze drifts across to the other side of where they're walking to Yuan and then back up to Wei Wuxian. "Um.. just wondering. There aren't any books that go into detail about how in the library."
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"I know," Huaisang admits "I'm working on quelling those rumours. It was the right choice not to accompany you to Lotus Pier, though, that might have only added fuel to the fire." He lifts a hand to stroke Jiang Cheng's face lovingly.
"It won't be long before it's safe enough that no further damage can be done to your reputation and we won't have to hide it." he says softly, his smile turning wicked as his lover starts tugging at his belt.
"Which is probably for the best, given that you are insatiable, my love." he adds teasingly, leaning in for another kiss.
The question makes him smile.
"Just yourself safe and sound, my loyal wolf."
~~~
"There are elements in common between ceremonies," Wuxian explains, noting the way Jingyi's gaze drifted over to Yuan and hiding a smile - so his boy might be getting a sworn brother? Idly, he wonders if that means they can just adopt Jingyi, his own parents seem pretty rubbish, he's a good kid, and Huaisang always called Mingjue's sworn brothers his brothers too, did it work the same for parents?
(Of course not, but what did Wuxian care about that)
"Usually it's promising loyalty, protection, that sort of thing. It might be different for everybody but there are some commonalities." he pauses, frowning thoughtfully "I wonder if it's a good idea to ask Zewu Jun about it..."
He's been through it himself, of course, it's just that Wuxian doesn't know if it would be a painful question, given that both his sworn brothers are dead and the manner of their deaths.
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"She sent a letter," he finally says. He leans forward and picks up his wine again. "I received it shortly before checking on Jin Ling. After everything.. she complains." In the grand scheme of things, they were minor complaints and demands, but just how long did he have to cater to someone he didn't marry? Someone he hurt his reputation for. Sure it had worked out for the best, the proof was sitting in his lap and his arm tightened a bit to further make it clear he knew that, but it didn't make the unfairness suddenly go away. And of all people to come take care of his nephew, it would be an Ouyang instead of his brother or someone he could stand to look at or talk to.
Well.. that might be pushing it with Wuxian.
~~~
Lan Zhan would find it very cute that Wei Wuxian was trying to adopt more of the juniors. He was certain Jingyi would only be the start before his husband was attached to the whole brood like he was. As one of the clan leaders, he could take on roles he wouldn't normally have say over, but there were limits. Fortunately for all of them, Jingyi was mostly an adult now and besides a marriage, he was about done with any obligations to his parents besides what to do if and when they passed.
Little did Lan Zhan know that marriage part was going to be a tricky hurdle.
Jingyi nods along. Loyalty, protection, friendship.. he could certainly promise all of those things. He wonders if there's anything else he should add. He looks back up at the mention of Zewu Jun. "You think so?" He could ask him when they get back. "Should it be done in front of anyone?"
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"She feels jilted," Huaisang says softly, leaning his head against Jiang Cheng's shoulder "she'll never understand that you did this for her, and for Jin Ling. I don't know how people miss the lengths you go to just to protect them."
He knows that Jiang Cheng actively works to keep it from people, but he thinks it's a terrible shame that nobody seems to understand how much he sacrifices - even when he doesn't need to.
"What are her complaints? Is it anything I can help with?" his offer is serious, but he follows it up with a slightly impish smile "It's the least I can do for her after stealing her man so soon after the wedding was called off."
~~~
"Maybe," Wuxian concedes, because he's honestly not sure how Zewu Jun would react to having that brought up, but he also knows that he he probably would appreciate having one of the juniors come to him for advice, it would help him settle back into his role now he's emerged from seclusion.
"I think there should be witnesses, but it doesn't have to be a lot of people."
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His mind drifts back to the present at his boyfriend's questions. Before he can answer, he laughs at the remark. "You make it sound like you had that planned!.. you didn't, did you?"
He's really teasing. Who could've predicted his life would've fallen apart in such a public display on the night before his wedding and that he'd be so willing to be seduced immediately after? Huaisang was good, but was he that good?
"I'll show you the letter and you can tell me what you think," he says, making an effort to not brush Huaisang's offer aside.
~~~
The more Jingyi thinks about this idea the more excited he gets. He thanks Wei Wuxian and with a smile returns to his position in line. It's a long travel before Hanguang Jun calls for a break near dawn. They've reached the foothills of the mountain and have turned south, heading toward the coast. The wind has picked up and there isn't much in the way of trees to shelter them here, but they'd all been told to bring warm clothes for a reason.
Hanguang Jun passes around bread and explains now that by mid-afternoon they'll be in a small village on the way to Tingshan. There's been rumors of something disturbing family burial plots ands killing people in the woods nearby. "We don't know exactly what we're dealing with yet since we don't have all the facts. We should be prepared for anything."
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"You did the right thing, my love." Huaisang reassures him softly - he knows he's biased, but he's also quite genuine about it, even if Jiang Cheng hadn't turned to him he would have thought so. The beautiful man he's currently draped over deserves true happiness, not settling and resentment for the sake of politics.
"Of course not!" Huaisang protests, laughing "I didn't even have any intentions when I stayed behind, I just thought you needed a friend... I'm very happy how things did turn out, though."
As manipulative as he could be, he wouldn't go that far - he never would have thought he could seduce Jiang Cheng, for a start.
He's about to say something else when there's a bang from the door - a servant had just turned the corner with food for Jiang Cheng, causing Zizhen to scramble to his feet and instead half falling into the door.
Huaisang shifts immediately, untangling himself from Jiang Cheng and rearranging his robes, moving apart from the other sect leader before anybody saw anything.
Zizhen hesitates, unsure if he should run away or not as the servant stares at him.
~~~
Yuan gives his father a nod and a smile when he sees Jingyi dropping back to join the others, moving back himself so he can walk with his friend - he doesn't ask what they were talking about, not wanting to pry in case it was something private.
Wei Wuxian, on the other hand, immediately fills his husband in on the conversation.
Yuan sits with Jingyi while they eat, listening intently to the explanation of what's going on - he wants to be as prepared as possible, because the last thing he wants is to make any mistakes on his first night hunt.
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The door is thrown open with a slight crackle of electricity in the air and Wanyin catches him by the collar and shoves him roughly against a wall. "You!" He didn't know what the meaning of this was but he had half a mind to beat this kid. "Don't speak."
He looks back at the servant. "Take that in and leave." Whenever the servant was vacating the room, Jiang Cheng finally moves by dragging Zizhen by the collar of his robes into the suite and slamming the door. "What the hell are you doing here? Lie and I may just have to check and make sure you're not possessed." As in, he'll get whipped.
~~~
Lan Zhan isn't nearly as excited about the idea of sworn brothers as Wei Wuxian is. He quietly worries, though not surprisingly isn't able to express exactly why to his partner. In this case, he needs some time to figure out the reason himself and not just find the ever difficult words.
When they break, he watches the two carefully, though by the tend has no better idea what his making him afraid than before. The two boys were so different than Lan Huan and his sworn brothers were but after seeing that devastation, it's hard to support this.
Jingyi, on the other hand, spends some time eating and talking to Sizhui, but the rest he's fielding a lot of questions from the younger juniors. Not only does he usually know the answers, he has a story to back most of them up. A lot of it has to do with a place called Yi City which a number of them shudder when he mentions.
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Zizhen is about to bolt when the door is flung open and Jiang Cheng looks about as angry as Zizhen's ever seen him - or more accurately, it's the angriest Jiang Cheng has ever been at him. Zizhen will talk back to his father and stand up for his friends, but he's never faced that kind of fury and he's honestly terrified.
Huaisang gives the servant a kind smile and encourages them to leave quickly once the food is left on the table. Unfortunately, Zizhen is not getting the same kindness, in fact once the servant has left, Huaisang flicks out his fan and just watches with interest.
"I-I- I was just- I wanted-" all Zizhen's excuses died on his lips in the face of the threat and he shrinks back a little in fear "Jin Ling was... worried...." he confesses in a small voice.
~~~
Wuxian notices his concern, of course he does, he can read his husband like a book, though it takes him a little time to put the pieces together and realise it must be to do with his brother's own somewhat tragic experience with sworn brotherhood.
He thinks he's got time to change his mind, though, to realise that Jingyi and Yuan are about as far from Meng Yao or Mingjue as you can get.
Yuan listens to the tales with interest, joining in with the other juniors to ask questions.
"Alright," Wuxian says eventually "let's get moving, the village isn't far so stay alert, monsters don't always wait politely for you to talk to the locals before they attack."
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The reminder that Zizhen is there for Jin Ling helps reign in some of his rage though. He folds his arms over his chest, but his temper keeps making zidian shimmer on his wrist. "Worried? Worried about what? Does he dare question my loyalty?" Okay so now there may be two boys he might be beating tonight.
~~~
Perhaps there was a part of Lan Zhan that was unwilling to share Yuan just yet too. They'd just gotten their son back after years of being without him. Jin Ling already had a claim Lan Zhan was hoping would be forgotten before too long and there was another boy waiting in the wings for him. It wasn't rational, but he wanted everyone to leave his precious son alone. They'd never be good enough for him, after all.
"Right, dust off any crumbs and rinse your hands with the water so you don't attract any beasts with the smell of bread," Jingyi instructs the young ones- which includes Yuan. As they get in line, he keeps up with some of his advice. "Also as we get close, something you should know. It can get scary but you need to be very careful not to run toward or away from anything. A common tactic for evil spirits is to disguise their voices as people in distress. It's natural to want to run to help if you hear someone but we have to move as a group and be cautious."
Hanguang Jun pets Apple and with firm tug on the reigns, gets the donkey moving again. Fortunately Jingyi doesn't keep going after his latest set of advice or Lan Zhan might have had to cut him off. He'd never been one to tolerate endless chatter... unless it was from his husband.
The morning is foggy and there is a short misty rain during the later morning early afternoon. By the time they get closer to the village though, the sun was shining and they were starting to dry out.
Near the back, one of the young juniors stops as he catches sight of something among the tall grasses and yelps. "Hanguang Jun! Hanguang Jun!" He comes racing up the ranks making all of them look at him funny. "I think I just saw a tiger!" He points, but of course nothing is in the direction.
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"No no of course not!" Zizhen says quickly, eyes widening in horror at the very idea "He's not worried about you. Well, he is, but I mean-" his gaze flicks nervously over to Huaisang, who is still lazily fanning himself and watching the show.
"He's worried for you..." he admits. He doesn't want to say too much in front of Huaisang, although maybe he should, maybe knowing Jin Ling was on to him would convince him to stop whatever plan he has in mind.
Except... well... the conversation he'd overheard sort of made him feel like maybe Jin Ling was wrong...
~~~
Yuan listens carefully to the advice as he falls into line with the others, committing it to memory along with everything else he's learning - he wants to make everybody proud and not make any mistakes so that they don't regret bringing him on the hunt.
"A tiger?" Wuxian calls when the commotion happens, leaning slightly so he can look over at the boys with a shake of his head "This close to the village? Are you sure?"
It could be related to the strange goings on around here, but it's just as likely a disciple with an over-active imagination thinking he saw something.
It could have even just been a perfectly ordinary cat.
"Lan Zhan," he calls to his husband "What do you want to do, investigate or keep moving?"
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"What are you going to- you know what, I don't care." He absolutely cares, but it would be way more embarrassing to make Zizhen repeat anything he overheard than just act like he is invincible and above the whole thing.
"Tell him that Huaisang isn't a threat to him or me, he's an ally. Beyond that, it's none of either of your business. Also, if you're going to spy for him for godsakes keep an eye out for servants!" He rolls his eyes. He looks at Huaisang and smirks. "Anything else you want to add before I kick him out of here?"
~~~
Lan Zhan stops when hears the junior call for him. He scans their surroundings, also thinking some of the same things Wei Wuxian is. After a moment, he hands the reigns to his husband. "Take them into the village."
"Hanguang Jun? You're going to take on a tiger alone?" The junior who originally caused the commotion asks. His question goes unanswered as Lan Zhan keeps going out into the field by himself.
Jingyi grabs the youth's arm when he starts forward. "No! We follow orders. Don't worry, he's taken on a lot tougher things than a tiger." He looks at Wei Wuxian to confirm that. A bunch of soldiers was way worse than a tiger, right?
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"I-I will!" Zizhen stammers, eyes wide and barely believing he's not being immediately shipped back home - or worse. He looks fearfully over at Huaisang, who considers Jiang Cheng's question with a tilt of his head.
"If you ever want to get better at gathering information, come and talk to me." He says instead of a rebuke, his innocent expression at odds with the words.
Zizhen stares at him for a moment and then nods, just slightly, before giving one last genuinely contrite look to both of them.
"I'm sorry Jiang-zongzhu, Nie-zongzhu, I was just trying to help a friend, I hope you can forgive me."
~~~
Yuan also almost steps after him, but he stops as well when Jingyi prevents the other boy from going, casting a nervous glance over at his father who gives him a reassuring smile.
"A measly tiger is no match for your dear Hanguang Jun," he announces to the group with a grin "come on, ducklings, let's carry on to the village. You can lament the fate of the poor tiger later."
Yuan bites back a smile and falls in with the others.
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"Should I be impressed or ready to disown him?" He jokes, holding an arm out for Huaisang to join him again. He wonders what it is about Huaisang specifically that was making his nephew suspicious. Unless.. did Jin Ling still harbor some loyalties to Jin Guangyao? If so, that could make this relationship very tricky. He's not sure either how much he can talk about that to Huaisang. Could he really muster up that kind of understanding? Hmm.
"Hungry?" He asks, offering up some food to help give himself time to think.
~~~
When Zizhen gets back to the room, he'll find an awkward surprise. Jin Ling has made it about a meter from his bed before he clearly had trouble and.. just ended up sitting down. Or he made it further and this is as far as he'd crawled back before getting tired and again, sitting down. Either way, he's not in bed, he sitting on the floor looking totally winded and holding his arm funny.
"Hey," He puffs, like this is totally normal. "You look.. kinda like you saw a ghost."
~~~
Jingyi puts a hand on Sizhui's shoulder. He counts it as a strong plus that Yuan didn't go racing after his father but listened to them. Not every new junior watching their parent march into battle like that would've been able to handle it. Of course, most didn't usually have their other parents also there.. well, whatever. He still thought he did well.
One of the town elders comes out to greet them and leads them to a house of a recently deceased old couple for them to use while they are there. It'll be a cramped fit, but there's a small barn for Apple too.
It's explained they can rest for a while and then there will be a meal prepared for them where the leader of the town Tian Niu will go over all the details with them.
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Huaisang was honestly intrigued that Jin Ling was so distrustful of him - it could be lingering loyalty to his uncle, he can understand that, sometimes he thinks about the person he used to think Meng Yao was and feels a strange grief for the trust that was betrayed between them, entirely separate from the betrayal of murdering Mingjue - but there's a surprisingly small number of people who recognise everything he did to destroy Guangyao, or at least, who are more wary of him because of it. It's an interesting reaction.
He shifts back into Jiang Cheng's lap, getting comfortable as he considers the question.
"I may be biased, but I think sending spies speaks to a certain savvy that should probably be encouraged... maybe not spying on you, though, that seems foolish. At least," he smirks "it does when he gets caught."
He turns his attention to the food and nods.
"Yes, please."
~~~
Zizhen looks at Jin Ling, thinks about saying something, thinks about offering a hand up, and then decides instead to give him a moment and just drops down on the floor beside him.
"Your uncle caught me eavesdropping," he confesses with a wince "I thought he was going to kill me with Zidian."
~~~
Yuan tries to make himself useful as they get settled, though there doesn't seem to be anything he can do so eventually he just makes himself comfortable and settles in to wait.
"Do night hunts normally involve waiting like this?" He asks Jingyi quietly, needing something to distract himself from the fact his father was away possibly dealing with a tiger. He knows he doesn't need to worry if his other father isn't worried, but he can't help it.
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They have. He already had a small network started, but at least quarter of those part of it had been on that initial list of people to take out. If he'd continued several more years though, he probably would've figured it out on his own or gotten assassinated.. one of the two.
He kisses Huaisang's shoulder and hugs him closer for a moment before letting them focus on the food.
~~~
This was why he loved Zizhen. His friend was just awesome. Of all responses he could've asked for, not making a big deal about Jin Ling randomly being on the floor or not feeling like they had to panic and get him back on the bed had to be the very best. His shoulders slump a bit with relief.
He starts to laugh at the confession and shakes his head. "See? I told you he wouldn't though, right? He's so predictable." He snickers with a fond expression on his face. "He's like Fairy. He can get all snarly and scary, but he'd never actually hurt you. Are you okay? You didn't piss yourself or anything did you? I seriously wouldn't judge you if you did. I know he can be scary as hell when he's like that!"
~~~
"The bad ones, yeah," Jingyi mutters. "It really depends. Sometimes they don't want to talk to us at all and other times they want to have a full town meeting first. It really depends on how controlling the clans involved are. Sometimes that means they're covering something up but often it means they just think they're being helpful. This.. they're being a little weird."
Abruptly they all hear from the distance several monstrous roars and some kind of scramble. It doesn't sound like a tiger at all nor does it sound like any creature they've ever heard before. The exact location isn't even all that clear. How the sound permeates through the whole village too is bizarre.. assuming you aren't currently panicking from the noise of the monsters and can pay attention to such things.
Jingyi reaches for his sword but looks to Wei Wuxian for orders. He can tell something was off about that, but he's not sure what. Several of the younger juniors are visibly shaken but they're trying to be strong.
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"That would be telling." Huaisang says innocently - it's obvious enough that the answer is yes, but he's not going to give away all Jin Ling's secrets outright. He's glad they managed to ferret out the weak links in the young sect leader's spy network, because it's off to a promising start.
Hopefully he's left it in a strong enough state that any future plots against him will be found out by his own people.
Mostly, right now, he hopes they can eat their dinner without any further interruption.
~~~
"I thought I was going to," Zizhen says fervently, shaking his head. Jin Ling's uncle is terrifying
"Before that, though...I actually heard a lot of stuff..." he admits, though he's debating how much he should tell his friend - he wants to reassure him that it really seems like there's something genuine between them but he's not sure how he'll feel about that news - he's also not sure if he should tell him that Huaisang offered to teach him how to be a better spy.
He's also feeling a lot more forgiving now that he's heard Jiang Cheng wasn't cheating on his cousin.
(If he thinks about it, he might wonder about the fact that he managed to hear a lot of conveniently reassuring things regarding everything he was worried about, almost as if somebody had noticed they were being spied on long before he gave himself away)
~~~
Yuan frowns thoughtfully, about to say something when chaos erupts and he gasps in surprise, grabbing his sword as well. He manages to hold himself, staying beside Jingyi and waiting for orders, knowing that he's not experienced enough to rush headlong into trouble.
"Alright," Wei Wuxian says, motioning for the Lan disciples to line up. He's not entirely sure what to do about Yuan - he wants to keep him safe, but he suspects he might object to being asked to stay here. It's harder to keep an eye on him with his husband still off dealing with the possible tiger.
"Let's just go and investigate. Everybody stay alert, stay at least in pairs, don't go too far. Does everybody have their signal talismans if they get separated? Yes? Good. Let's go." he says, giving Jingyi a look that says look after Yuan - he doesn't want to single him out by saying anything out loud, but he's decided he can put his trust in Jingyi.
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"Yeah? Like what?" He asked. You can't start something like that and then leave him hanging, Zizhen. That's not right. He makes a face. "He wasn't in there was he?"
(If he did, Jiang Cheng certainly wasn't the one who'd thought to talk about that crap! He never would've said anything in front of someone else willingly. He did have a very devious boyfriend though..)
~~~
Lan Zhan frowns as his eyes scan the edge of the forest, the meadow surrounding the town, and then the town itself. That noise hadn't come from a monster. In fact, he hadn't seen anything more dangerous than a fox. It reminded him of that trap Nie Huaisang had set around his Ancestral Burial Mound that would make the barking sounds. If that was the case, then they weren't looking for a monster at all. They were looking for evidence of a spell a person cast- or a god, but he doubted that. There'd be way more casualties.
His eyes catch movement and he takes off running toward the trees. He has to quickly change course as arrows start flying at him. Just as he is almost upon whoever is attacking him, he sees a flash of orange, black and white. A wild tiger is no match for Lan Zhan. A trained tiger with a bunch of men with bows and magic...
He smirks.
Jingyi, however, was not nearly as excited about this prospect. Him? He was being appointed keeper of Yuan? And no, that wasn't a reaction like he was too good for this and why is he getting saddled with this task. It was- holy shit, the Chief Cultivator and the Yiling Patriarch are expecting me to keep their baby alive while we go running into battle?
Still, if anyone here could besides Wei Wuxian himself, it was Jingyi. He nods his head in response. His duty was clear and he was going to take it seriously. "Stay close to me," he warns Sizhui.
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"Uh, yea, he was." Zizhen admits "they talked about..uh.. he mentioned something about his spies keeping you and him safe while your uncle was away, and how my cousin had written to your uncle and Nie-zongzhu said she'd never understand that he called off the wedding for her sake, and for yours, which I don't really understand? Oh and it sounds like they got together after the wedding was called off, but I guess like... probably that night or something? Like it sounds like Nie-zongzhu stayed behind when everybody else left..." he thinks that might be everything that's important for Jin Ling to know, but he tries to recall every detail of the conversation.
"Oh! And they want their relationship to be a secret so it doesn't do any damage to your uncle's reputation."
~~~
If it had been Lan Zhan here, Wuxian suspects he would have made a different choice, but he likes to give kids a little more freedom and trust. He needs to focus on being a leader and keeping all of the juniors alive, he can trust Yuan to be sensible and he can trust Jingyi to protect him.
And if anything does go wrong, he isn't going to be very far away.
Yuan nods, his grip on his sword tightening as he moves to follow Jingyi, alert for any danger as they move out into the village.
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