lastjinstanding | Brothel meme continued

That... that was definitely a kiss. That was a kiss. Just behind his ear. Jiang Cheng was totally sober and still kissed him - and that kind of kiss? That's not lust or arousal, that's just affection.

Huaisang thinks his brain might have short-circuited. At least he manages to keep giving the spiritual energy, which is probably for the best since that's the moment Wei Wuxian (who is riding up ahead, as far away as possible from whatever the fuck is happening between those two, don't think he isn't going to ask about it later, Jiang Cheng) shouts to catch everybody's attention, pointing out the plume of smoke and urging his horse into a gallop.

The others around them do the same and Huaisang holds on tightly to Jiang Cheng's wrist, focusing intently on giving him as much energy as possible and trying not to think about how painful things are going to get if their horse starts galloping right now. He's not going to mention that, though, because he knows this is more important.

Haha, joke's on you! He has no freakin' clue!

Everything else in Jiang Cheng's mind faded as he gasped, staring up at that ominous smoke. No! If they were too late because he was drunk and screwing around, he was never going to forgive himself! He likely wouldn't anyway if this was connected to Jin Ling.

Unfortunately for Huaisang there wasn't much he could do to help. Well, except when he notices he does try to bunch more of his robes in the front of him and get it underneath A-Sang as a bit more of a cushion. He did cause that pain after all! His only other option would be to heal him and he didn't dare risk the energy if he might need to fight.

As they draw closer, the night air gets thick with smoke making it even darker, the smell of charred flesh, shouts of pain and fear from both men and horses, and yes, a dog barking. As they step into a clearing that backs up against a solid wall of stone, they find chaos.

Men in gold and white are fighting amongst themselves and what looks like a group of bandits as well- though they seem to be aiding one particular side of the guards. Jin Ling's carriage is fully engulfed in flames and on its side with one of the wheels broken but there are patches of dry grass and some bushes nearby that have also caught flame making everything smoky and hard to see.

Bodies lay everywhere either injured or dead and those still fighting are trampling them or tripping over them. However, in the very center of the fray is a man in black fighting almost like a madman, with two blades- one dark, one light- standing over the small blood form with a broken arrow protruding from a black shoulder of Jin Ling. Fairy is tucked against him, snapping at anyone who comes near, excluding the man defending him.

Wei Wuxian and the other Jiang disciples come galloping into the fray - it's almost impossible to tell which of the Jin guards they should be helping, though, amongst all the chaos. It's clear that they should go for the ones attacking the man defending Jin Ling, but beyond that there's no way to differentiate friend from foe.

Wei Wuxian pulls his horse to an abrupt stop and whips a blank talisman out from his robes. A guard swings a sword at him and he dodges, but flicks out his finger to allow it to be cut so he can use the blood to scrawl on the talisman, his foot lashing out to kick the guard back before he can attack again. He holds the talisman up to his face and mutters the incantation and then flings it out into the battle.

Immediately it scatters into small glowing orbs which dart out and attach themselves to several of the combatants - not including Jin Ling and the man defending him, or any of the Jiang disciples.

"The light marks enemies." he calls out, and the Jiang disciples fall into the fight, some of them helping to defend Jin Ling while others help those being attacked by the marked fighters.

Huaisang stops giving Jiang Cheng energy and twists a little so he can look at the man behind him.

"Go on, save your nephew." he says, shoving himself away so he can jump off the horse - it's not the most graceful move in the slightest, but he manages to roll as he hits the ground and he knows he'd only get in the way if he didn't do it.

Jiang Cheng is startled, of course, by Huaisang's rather awful jump from the horse. He curses under his breath about letting him be the one to jump from the horse or else.. but he doesn't have time to think of a threat that would never be carried out. He instead thunders toward the stranger standing over his nephew.

As he gets close he recognizes the blade being from the Lan clan, which is confusing. He also sees the man is indeed protecting him. Sliding off the horse, he hurries closer. "Who are you? What happened?" He demands, zidian sizzling. The questions go unanswered but instead, he's bowed to. Strange.. however, since he isn't getting attacked, he drops to Jin Ling's side. He has a terrible moment of deja vu with someone he loves in a condition like this in middle of a battlefield.

The boy had a serious burn on his shoulder and the arrow was lodged deep. There'd be a scar from at least one or both of those injuries and that was if they were lucky. There was some black soot around his nose and mouth that Jiang Cheng wasn't sure what might have caused it, but it was causing a rough wheezing sound as he tried to breathe. As bad as it sounded, it gave Wanyin some hope that there was evidence he was alive at all.

Beyond that the rest of the wounds looked fairly artificial, ones that would hurt but he could recover from. Fortunately with the added help and being able to identify who the opponents really were, the battle was able to shift quickly.

"Wuxi- what do you want?" Abruptly the dark man was shaking Wanyin's shoulder roughly and moves to his side. He stabs the ground with the dark blade and opens a water skin from his belt. He makes a gesture toward his nose and mouth with it and offers it to him.

"What?" Wanyin asks confused. As he looked at the man, he noticed the black veins on his neck and scowls. "Who the hell are you?!"

Song Lan breathes a huff of frustration and pulls out a cloth, ignoring the question again. He moves closer and spills the water over Jin Ling's face, causing the young man to cough. He uses the cloth to wipe away the black sooth that comes up from the coughs.

Lan looks up at Wanyin and if Wei Wuxian is there, him too. He taps his chest and then makes a motion with his hand going upward along his throat and points at his nose.

"He needs to bring up the...whatever that is?" Wei Wuxian guesses, arriving just in time to see the miming. He claps a hand on the other man's shoulder and gives him a grateful nod "Song Lan, it's good to see you."

He crouches down at the other side of his nephew, looking over him with a worried expression before looking back to Song Lan.

"Is that what you meant? We need to clear his lungs?"

Around them, the battle is dying down, nearly all the attackers either dead or captured (as long as at least one of them is alive, Wuxian thinks, they can question them, make sure there's nobody else left of this plot)

Huaisang is sitting on a rock to the side of the road waiting for them to be finished, he doesn't have anything useful to add and he's pretty sure he twisted his ankle when he jumped, so he's just going to sit quietly and not make a fuss until it's time to leave.

Lan smiles at his old friend and gives him a bow. He also nods that the Patriarch has the correct idea about the mime.

Wanyin keeps using the cloth as he was shown, but looks at his brother suspiciously. "What's the matter with this guy? Who is he and why does he look like that puppet of yours?"

Lan's eyes narrow and a bit at that, but the man was holding an injured kid. He'll let it slide, but he does step closer to Wuxian.

"This is Song Lan, you've met before, at the Chang Clan's and again when we were staying with Wen Ning and his sister." Though he's well aware his brother had other things on his mind during that time.

"He was turned into a puppet by Xue Yang, who also took his tongue, which is why he's not speaking." Wei Wuxian explains, giving the other man an apologetic look for bringing it up, but knowing his brother was too rattled to hear anything but the full explanation "we restored his consciousness during that whole debacle at Yi City."

He glances worriedly over Jin Ling, praying they got here in time.

"He also got here before we did." He points out.

The memories come flooding back to him and he looks up at the man who after these few years does look quite a bit different apologetically. How could he forget what Song Lan did for his sister? "Song-xiong, I apologize. I-"

The rogue cultivator quickly shakes his hand and head to cut him off. He smiles, bows his head, and gestures to Jin Ling. He steps further away to let Wanyin work and picks up his sword. In the ground, he writes Arrow needs to be removed. Might bleed out. Tricks or cauterize?

Wei Wuxian nods, frowning thoughtfully. and assessing what they have on hand.

"Cauterise. He's still barely conscious, we may as well since I doubt he'll feel it. Then we can get him moved somewhere safe." he decides, he pauses for a moment before looking up at the other man "Thank you, Song Lan, without you we might have been too late."

He thinks that's all that needs to be said, doubts Song Lan would accept anymore, so he nods at him and returns to his nephew's side.

"Jiang Cheng, hold him still, I'm going to get the arrow out," he explains, getting a flame talisman ready to seal the wound "then we're going to have to get him moving. Lanling or Yunmeng?"

He'll let Jiang Cheng decide, suspecting his brother might want to feel some sense of control right now.

Wuxian certainly has the rogue figured out. A heartfelt thanks is far more than necessary, though it is appreciated and makes up for the little bit of abuse from a cranky parent. Although they might all be getting more if faced with having to do this to Jin Ling in front of Jiang Cheng.

Wanyin's eyes widen in alarm as it dawns on him what they're doing. He curses and gets a knife from his boot. Quickly he cuts back at his nephew's sleeves so they don't get caught in the artificial burn. "We'll take him to Lanling. They have some renowned healers there." He would love to take his nephew home to protect him, but he but the resources were better in the larger city.

"I can't believe we let him leave like this.." He mutters, hating himself for failing the boy yet again. "Why didn't you stop him, Wuxian?"

Song Lan kneels down and takes Jin Ling's wrist gently. He can attempt to keep the boy from going into shock at least. He nods to Wuxian.

"He left before any of us realised, and his guards half drowned two of your men to keep us from finding out what was going on," Wuxian says quietly, it's an explanation but not an excuse, he's angry at himself as well "when I came after him he set Fairy on me."

He's still eyeing the dog warily, but it's backed off enough that he can concentrate on Jin Ling, thankfully. If only he wasn't so scared of dogs, maybe Jin Ling wouldn't have been able to chase him off so easily, maybe he would have been able to do something.

He inspects the arrow first, pouring some water over it to clear away the blood so he can get a good look at the entry wound. He nods to himself and wraps a firm hand around the shaft, drawing it back quickly and cleanly and immediately pressing the lit talisman against the wound as the blood bubbles up.

He looks back over the battlefield at all of the dead and injured men in gold and white. There were a number of Jiang clan members assisting now to bandage wounds and find some kind of order, but it was still a nightmare. He didn't understand how the guard could've gone from the upstanding group he'd left his nephew with to this mess.

Jin Ling's face twists in pain as the arrow is drawn out and lets out a shout. Luckily as soon as it's clear, he's sinking completely into unconsciousness and doesn't feel it when Wuxian has to burn him. It rips Wanyin's heart out to watch his child-by-heart suffer like this. He then too helps give some sustaining energy to keep the boy from sinking too far.

At that point, Song Lan steps back and asks through writing if they need him to travel for a while with them or if he should depart.

"I'm sure you would be welcome if you'd like to avail yourself of Lanling's hospitality, but if you'd rather be on your way without any further diversions, we understand," Wei Wuxian tells him, straightening up so he can bow to the other man. He suspects he might only be offering out of politeness, so he's very much offering an out without trying to make him feel unwelcome.

He leaves Jiang Cheng to look after Jin Ling and starts getting the remaining Jin guards and the Jiang disciples ready to depart. Jin Ling's carriage is pretty solidly destroyed, but some of the Jiang disciples brought a wagon which is just now coming up on the scene. Two other Jiang disciples come to their leader to offer to help him get Jin Ling into the wagon.

Huaisang waits it out, unsure if he should ask for a horse to go back to Yunmeng and then onwards, or if he should stick with the others. He figures he'll ask once the chaos has died down.

Song Lan mostly steps aside but Wuxian will see him lingering a bit in the background before finally disappearing further down the road.

Jin Ling is wrapped in a blanket to keep shock at bay and Wanyin lays him in the wagon. He then divides the forces among those who will return to Yunmeng to keep it running while he's gone and who will accompany him to Lanling.

"And what do you plan on doing? Are you going to assist me with getting rid of any of these remaining weasels or are you heading back to Gusu?" Wanyin asks Wuxian, before heads toward Huaisang.

Wuxian debates it for a moment before making a decision - the longer he's away, the more worried Yuan is going to be, and he thinks it's probably going to be better for his son if he doesn't find out about this.

"I'll go back to Gusu," he says "you've got this. Let me know if you need any help, though, I can come back."

Though, as his gaze flicks to the still patiently waiting Huaisang, he wonders if his brother actually has all the help he needs. As traumatising as it was to walk in on them (and wow is he glad he didn't barge in any sooner), he can sort of see this working, and for once he holds back any teasing (for now).

"Let me know how he's doing." he says, glancing briefly back to the wagon before heading for his horse.

Huaisang looks up as Jiang Cheng approaches and smiles hesitantly.

"Would you like me to go back with your men?" he asks, unsure if the other leader will want him around.

Jiang Cheng had suspected that would be the answer. It was for the best as he certain with someone like Wei Wuxian around there would be nothing but complications. The man was a headache! He wasn't feeling at all overwhelmed himself with having just humiliated himself and being emotionally vulnerable and then facing taking on his nephews problems that apparently he'd screwed up the last time. No. They weren't dealing with subtleties and manipulations that were far more his brother's specialty. Nah. Wanyin was sure it was best and not selfish at all that his brother, who had had a hand in allowing this to happen should go home instead of help him further.

"Very well," he says coolly. "You better get going before Fairy feels well enough to stand then."

The invitation for Huaisang to come with him to Lanling is on his tongue, but his dark mood and recent rejections twist the tone of the question. The other sect leader didn't want to deal with this any further. Whatever was going on between them had been fun but they were parting ways.

His expression hardens, much like a certain nephew's did after news of leaving Yuan. He circles his hands into a bow. "You're free to go as you please, Nie-zongzhu. At least accept the escort so I know you arrive safely. Thank you for your aid."

Wei Wuxian is more than familiar with his brother's moods, but he's made his decision now and he still thinks it's for the best - his family is waiting for him, and Jiang Cheng really can handle this better without him around, even if he doesn't feel like he can. Besides, he'll have Huaisang, right?

He's already setting off and is therefore not close enough to discover that he does not, in fact, have Huaisang.

The sect leader in question finds his smile dying on his lips at the cold response. He feels like the other shoe has dropped. Whatever moment they had on the horse was gone, merely an echo of what they had shared together, this was the cold reality of a fully sober Jiang Cheng realising he regretted his actions.

Huaisang is lucky he's had such practice hiding his emotions.

He stands, doesn't even wince at the weight on his injured ankle, and bows smoothly back.

"Of course, Jiang-zongzhu," the sweet familiarity already feels like a dream. "I hope Jin-zongzhu recovers well. Please let me know if the Nie sect can offer anything further."

The walk back to one of the waiting horses is agony, and he can already feel the developing hangover that suggests the right back is going to be utterly miserable in every way, but he mounts without looking back. He knows if he looks back, he'll break.

It does horrible things to his already broken heart to hear his name like that, even though he's the one who started it. To hear such formality from a man who's inner robe was still stained with his come was enough to make Jiang Cheng wish he hadn't gotten sober. A he watches the beautiful man strode away he sees himself chase after him multiple times before finally turning and order his men to leave.

As he sat down in the wagon beside his wounded, small nephew he wishes Wen Qing was still alive. (And that he'd treated her better too).

~~~

"So he feeds us these bowls of congee that he tells us are cures for the puppet poison and I swear, they are the most disgustingly spicy things I've ever had to eat! It was like drinking liquid fire! I asked him if he was actually trying to kill us instead of cure us and had to think whether I'd rather be a puppet than keep eating," Jingyi snickers.

Over the couple of last hours he and Zizhen had been sharing a few of their favorite 'Wei Wuxian' stories to help distract them through the final stretch of their journey. All of their butts were sore from sitting in this carriage and Jingyi had a headache from Hell. He'd also suffered from a couple bouts of nausea as he recovered from his concussion. Zizhen cleverly thought up this activity to entertain them and also to test his friend's memory. So far everything was okay, except Jingyi had been a little more subdued and was choosing to sit closer than usual to future sect leader.

"Oh oh oh! Hey! Look! Yuan!" He points out of the carriage. When his friends look, they can see through the trees and mist, their first glimpse of Cloud Recesses.

Huaisang is halfway back to Yunmeng when he has to stop to be sick, and when he reaches for a handkerchief to wipe his mouth he discovers the comb tucked into his sleeve.

He stares at it for a long moment, wondering what it means and if he should take it back, but eventually he decides selfishly that no, Jiang Cheng can have it back if he asks for it and not before, and until then Huaisang will keep it - the only tangible reminder of their brief affair.

~~~

Yuan giggles at the story - he's so grateful to Zizhen for his suggestion, truthfully, there's something about all these stories that are not only giving him a clearer picture of the man his father is, but they're also drawing out memories of his own. Just snippets, tiny moments, but they're there, and he treasures every one.

"I don't think he's ever been a good cook." He comments softly, a fond smile on his face.

Zizhen is keeping a close eye on Jingyi, but so far he's quite content with how things are going - he hopes he's only being subdued because he's still in some pain, but he certainly isn't complaining at the closeness.

He turns to look when Jingyi points out the window, but makes sure to give Yuan space since he hasn't seen it before.

Yuan leans over so he can see, eyes wide with interest.

"Oh," he breathes "it's so pretty..."

That is exactly the case, but the incident also scared him more than he wanted to admit. So if Zizhen would just ignore with him that he really wanted comfort from his best friend, that wasn't too much to ask was it?

"The one who can cook is your other father! HanGuang-Jun is amazing! He's kind of like.." He glances back at Zizhen for help. How do you describe how cool Lan Zhan was? He gives up and focuses on Cloud Recesses instead. "Isn't it? Welcome home, Yuan! I've loved living here! It's so pretty and peaceful! Don't worry, Zizhen and I will help introduce you to everyone. He's been here often enough that it's like he's almost a junior himself!"

Your other father. Welcome home.

The words fill him with such warmth, Jingyi's easy acceptance has done wonders for his worry - someone else who knew his past but still considered him welcome here, even though he had no real obligation to Yuan and could easily snub him with very little consequence. He's still wary, of course, unsure if that will last if Hanguang Jun is not right there, but it still makes him happy for now.

Zizhen nods eagerly.

"I think you'll do great there, Yuan, you already seem so calm and well-mannered, you're almost more a Lan than Jingyi is already." he jokes, giving his best friend a small smile to let him know he's only teasing.

Yuan blushes.

"I don't know about that," he says softly "but thank you, both of you."

Yuan has a point. After sharing some of his energy and staying up most of the night, Hanguang Jun quietly sat in the corner of the carriage with his head down and eyes shut in meditation. He'd already encouraged the boys to keep talking and so far there hadn't been the slightest indication they'd bothered him. One of the skills learned while raising a bunch of juniors! Whether he was hearing anything they were saying or not was impossible to tell. Although the fact, he doesn't react to hearing Cloud Recesses is near might be a clue.

As if to prove Zizhen's point, Jingyi elbows him playfully in the ribs for his comment. "But yeah, he's actually right! You're very 'Lan'! I don't normally room with anyone in the dormitory because I'm the head junior, but everyone else has a roommate. I don't think you should be alone though, so you can stay with me. If you decide you want to be paired with someone else so you can get to know others, I won't take it personally and you can switch. Our rooms are really only for studying and stuff anyway. We have a bunk room for sleeping, some common areas for socializing and meditation, bedtime is at 9pm and wakeup is 5am, we eat when the dinner bell rings, and uh.. Zizhen what am I forgetting?"

"The other two thousand, nine hundred and ninety eight precepts?" Zizhen jokes, grinning at his friend.

Yuan looks a little in shock, though that was less about the amount of rules Zizhen just mentioned and more because he's still stuck on bedtime is at 9pm and wakeup is 5am

"It's alright, the rules really aren't that bad," Zizhen says hurriedly "You'll get used to them in no time."

"...sometimes 5am is when I go to sleep." Yuan says then.

This is going to take more adjustment that he realised.

Did they just hear Lan Zhan chuckle?

"You'll have to be on Wei Ying's schedule then. It's much later." Light colored eyes open and look up at Yuan, just the slightest touch of humor to them. "And the dormitories are for Lan disciples, which you are not just yet. Tonight you'll be with your family."

"But I thought.. er, I'm sorry, Hanguang Jun." Jingyi quickly bows to cover up that he started to question him.

Fortunately the Chief Cultivator was in a pretty relaxed mood given the circumstance, so he doesn't get a reprimand or even a sharp look. "Tomorrow," he explains simply.

Yuan smiles gratefully, glad he's not going to be thrown immediately into the thick of things and expected to follow the rules - which he is belatedly realising might be more, far more, than he's used to or than he expected.

There was that just yet as well, and it suddenly hits him that Lan Wangji expects him to become a disciple. To actually learn how to cultivate. Something else that he's always wanted. He's a little terrified of being so far behind everyone else, but excited too - which about covers his feelings about this whole situation. Daunting as hell, but still somehow a dream come true.

He just wishes he could be sharing it with Jin Ling.

"Thank you, though," he says to Jingyi with a soft smile "I would be delighted to share with you going forward."

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sorry I've not switched accounts lol

No worries!

Re: No worries!

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