Chapter Text
"Jin Guangyao! You're the worst!"
"A-Su, wait a minute, please hear my explanation, I-,"
"I won't listen! I don't want to hear any excuses. If you have someone else in your heart, please do not come to me..." The young maiden said bitterly, tears pooling in her eyes, threatening to overflow.
In front of him, Jin Guangyao was desperately trying to salvage the situation, "That's why I said, I can explain. There's no such thing as someone else in my heart, A-Su, please calm down and listen to me. The truth is-,"
"No need. There's no need to explain. Jin Guangyao, do you really have me in your heart?"
"I do! Maiden Qin, I really like you in my heart. Heaven and Earth can testify."
"Then, why did you keep mistaking my favorite things with someone else's?" Qin Su looked at him blankly.
"That..." Jin Guangyao faltered for a moment.
However, when he looked at Qin Su's increasingly sarcastic look, he gritted his teeth and told the truth, "Those were Wei Wuxian's! I heard about it from Zewu-Jun!"
"Wei-Gongzi's?" Qin Su was stunned for a beat.
"Yes, it's his!"
"You said, those are Wei-Gongzi's, then, he doesn't like radish?"
"He dislikes their bland taste."
"He avoids bitter food like mustard greens and bitter gourd?"
"He can eat them but prefers to go without."
"He likes Peony flowers and loves to buy them whenever he goes in the market?"
"It's because Peony is elegant and represents love."
"He can make stuffed animals from scratch?"
"Apparently yes..."
"He likes to buy gouache and rogue in that certain Makeup chain from Qinghe?"
"He...buys it to give...to the ladies?"
"Even if he has married Zewu-Jun? And it was Zewu-Jun who told you this?"
"...Yes."
The more Jin Guangyao replied, the more he realized those sounded like a bunch of lies. It's funny to imagine Wei Wuxian's squeamish behavior in eating when the man didn't look like he was a picky eater. It's even more outrageous to know an 8-foot-tall man liked to purchase delicate flowers. Hearing Wei Wuxian who had terrorized the Wen Cultivators even just by the sound of his Dizi, apparently could make a plushie from scratch, sounded extremely ludicrous. Having Zewu-Jun sharing with others that his spouse liked to purchase rouge gouache for the ladies, was even more mythical.
Your narrative sounds like a fantasy, so why don't you go write one!? It's guaranteed to be sold out.
That must be people's reaction when hearing Jin Guangyao's recounting.
Qin Su, inevitably, also felt this way.
The more she heard Jin Guangyao's explanation, the more she felt this man treated her like a fool. Just because he's one of the Sunshot Campaign Heroes, and was praised for successfully assassinating Wen Ruohan in the end, did that mean he deserve to underestimate daughters in boudoirs in the likes of Qin Su who might not know much?
When she thought that Jin Guangyao didn't take her seriously and might even look down on her, Qin Su was deeply saddened in her heart.
"Pfft...Haha...Ahahaha..." Qin Su laughed mockingly, either at herself or Jin Guangyao's feeble excuse.
The maiden had a heartbreaking look in her eyes as she raised a question, "...Lianfang-Zun, in your eyes, am I just someone whom you can marry to ascertain your position?"
Jin Guangyao's pupils widened a fraction. "I have never. A-Su, who told you this nonsense? Please do not randomly believe what others say. Tell me, who is trying to destroy our relationship?"
After he knew who the bastards who wanted to meddle in his business were, just wait, let him make a plan to frame them, and justifiably massacre their whole family.
"No one specifically told me. I just realized it by myself." Qin Su shook her head and continued, "On the contrary, you, Lianfang-Zun, how desperate are you to lie? Telling it's Wei Wuxian's, and suggesting it's Zewu-Jun who told you? Why, because if it were those two people, I wouldn't be able to confirm it to them? Jin Guangyao, at least, give me more plausible reasons."
"That's the truth! A-Su, why can't you believe in me? I beg you, please-,"
Qin Su raised her hand and stood up. "That's it..." She took a deep breath and sighed, trying so hard not to cry. "I used to think you are unlike other Young Masters with their elevated ego, that's why my heart is attracted to you. But it seems like I am not the one your heart is yearning for. Farewell, Lianfang-Zun. We are not compatible..."
If it didn't happen to you, you wouldn't understand the pain. Jin Guangyao for the first time felt himself to be awfully innocent, telling the truth, but others still refused to believe him.
He rubbed his face and sighed heavily, plopping back to the seat in the private booth in Lanling Tea House.
Qin Su had already stormed outside, leaving him behind.
For a second, he had a murderous thought to formulate a plan to kill Lan Xichen.
It's all because of him! Because of his damn braggart mouth! Whoever wants to hear anything about Wei Wuxian? Jin Guangyao surely wasn't interested to know. He didn't care if Wei Wuxian liked spicy food. If he liked the color of red. If he liked fish soup with dates on hot days. If he liked apples more than oranges. If he liked this style of decoration more than another. So on and so forth. Who the hell cares about it?!
However, Lan Xichen kept sharing everything about his beloved spouse with his two Sworn Brothers. Either directly, or indirectly. Either straightforwardly, or in passing. Either verbally or in letters! Yes!! That guy even mentioned about Wei Wuxian in an official letter, Goddamn it!!
Even if he said that, but half of the responsibility actually lay on him.
Jin Guangyao wished he could fix his habit of digging for information. He wished that Lan Xichen was as taciturn and tight-lipped as Lan Wangji. Unfortunately, they both weren't. He had habitually induced Lan Xichen to tell him more about his private life, and the other man had also inadvertently revealed more about his own and his spouse's private life.
Even more unfortunately, Jin Guangyao was someone who could even remember a nobody Cultivator's name. It's literally no hard work for him to memorize everything about Wei Wuxian that Lan Xichen had told him in passing.
The bad luck then, when you remember too much, you'd start to confuse someone else's preference with others'.
Somehow, Jin Guangyao wished he could be a person who'd be able to give a damn to a nobody's name. Or a person who could selectively bury some memories in his mind. And yet again, unfortunately, he wasn't.
When he went back to Jinlintai, Jin Guangyao was greeted by a Jin Cultivator who worked under his command.
"Lianfang-Zun."
Jin Guangyao smiled warmly at him, looking like someone who hadn't just given a murderous thought to another Sect Leader, or contemplating whether to frame and slaughter an entire Sect who dared to intercept his good deeds. "Thank you for your good work today."
The subordinate saluted in return and reported, "There is a letter from Gusu."
"Throw it away." Jin Guangyao replied almost immediately.
"Alright...Huh??"
No, wait, don't just throw it away.
Rip it off.
Burn it to ash.
Feed it to a Turtle.
Throw the Turtle to the Eastern Sea.
Feed the Turtle to the Shark there or something.
Anything's fine, just don't give it to me!
...Or so Jin Guangyao wished he could say in this situation.
After taking a deep breath, he smiled again and said instead, "My apologies, I've heard it wrong before. You said, it was a letter from Gusu? If so, please put it in my study first. I will look at it later."
"...I understand."
At this time, another Jin Cultivator came and reported, "Lianfang-Zun, someone is here to see you."
Jin Guangyao snapped, "Is it also a certain Sect Leader from Gusu?!"
"Uh...? No??"
"So it isn't." Jin Guangyao smiled genially once again. "What's the matter? Who is it?"
"It's Madam Qin".
"Madam...Qin?" Jin Guangyao was startled.
"Madam Qin, welcome to Lanling. I'm truly sorry, I have just heard about your arrival, I haven't prepared anything yet. However, is there anything I can help you with?" Jin Guangyao greeted the middle-aged woman who still looked rather youthful despite her age.
They were currently sitting in another private chamber, as per Madam Qin's request. There were no other people in the periphery aside from the two of them.
"Lianfang-Zun. I'm here on behalf of my daughter..."
"Maiden Qin?" Jin Guangyao was surprised. "What happened to her?"
"It should be me who needs to ask you this. Lianfang-Zun, what have you done to my daughter?!" The Madam questioned him in a hysteria.
"No...please calm down first, Madam. I didn't do anything to her."
"Just because you said you didn't do anything to her, do you expect me to believe you?!"
Jin Guangyao, "..."
This firm denial over his true confession, why did it feel like a Deja Vu?
Her eyes looked erratic as the Madam continued to pursue, "Jin Guangyao, you didn't just directly deceive her to your bed, did you? Why did my A-Su go back crying in such a desolate state? No matter how I asked her, she refused to tell me anything."
"There's no such thing. Madam, you can check Maiden Qin yourself, we haven't done anything out of line."
"Check her? Do you mean I have to ask some midwife to put her in a humiliating experience?!"
"That's not what I mean...just ask Maiden Qin and I can assure you that she will give you an authentic account."
"You mean I have to listen to her words?" Madam Qin laughed deprecatingly. "After what happened to me, how can I fully believe what a woman will say to protect herself?"
Jin Guangyao frowned. "What do you mean?"
"What I mean is that you better say it honestly! She is your half-sister! Are you satisfied?!"
"My...what?"
"Wei-Gongzi,"
"Umm?"
Wei Wuxian was still busy tinkering with their recently modified teleportation rune, trying to perfect the rune into a more advanced usage.
Just like back then, at first, he reversed the House Protection Talisman into the Evil Attraction Talisman. However, the more he researched it, the further he advanced their utilization.
From just a mere talisman with limited range and implementation, into a set of ZhaoYin Flag with detailed and extensive appliances.
Lan Xichen took a peek at his work and subconsciously smiled.
Wei Wuxian was outgoing by nature, but there were times when he would look extremely focused and serious. It's when he was researching things he felt interested in. During this time, the young man could even seclude himself for days or even weeks with little contact with outsiders.
At first, Lan Xichen was quite worried about his habit. However, after some time, he realized it was just another side of Wei Wuxian that most people likely never know about. Just like Lan Xichen himself would feel gratification from Painting, Wei Wuxian too, felt proud of his own research.
Perhaps if he had a Cave where he could experiment with things, he would excitedly bring Lan Wangji there and introduce his workplace to him.
It wasn't like he was arrogant or showing off his ability. He just took pride in his passion and didn't bother to be modest about it. Lan Xichen felt, this side of him was somehow endearing. Perhaps because too much modesty would often lead to hypocrisy, sometimes a straightforward personality, reassures him. Something that Lan Xichen didn't even realize until he was involved with Wei Wuxian himself.
Perhaps, it was the reason back then he often encouraged Lan Wangji to stop acting duplicitous and approach the teen like he wanted to. Because if Lan Xichen himself didn't appreciate Wei Wuxian as a person, it was impossible for him to let his younger brother associate with such an individual.
Wei Wuxian didn't hear Lan Xichen's answer for quite a while and raised his head.
He saw Lan Xichen sitting in a daze, his hand absentmindedly combing Wei Wuxian's hair and pulling the stranded strands from falling to his face that might disrupt his focus.
"Zewu-Jun? What's the matter?"
"Huh?" Lan Xichen blinked. "Oh, nothing much. It's just, there are some gifts sent to you."
"Gifts?"
"Yes."
"Sent for me?"
"It is."
Wei Wuxian was surprised. At first, he wondered if it was Lan Wangji who gave him more gifts. However, lately, after his confession, our Hanguang-Jun had become even bolder. If Hanguang-Jun wanted to give him something, he would directly send it to Wei Wuxian personally. The most important thing was not sending the gift, but meeting the sweetheart!
He thought for a while and understood, "Ahh...it should be from Yunmeng, right? Does my Shijie send me more jars of spicy pickles?"
It's Autumn and most people would start storing vegetables for Winter provision. The Cook in the Lan Clan also had pickled vegetables. However, their style was quite different from Hunan cuisine.
In Yunmeng, spicy and sour food was extremely suitable for a cold Winter. Wei Wuxian liked those pickles the most. After his marriage to GusuLan, the Lan Sect was officially related to YunmengJiang. The two Sects started to engage in more business deals. As a result, the transportation and delivery channel between the two regions was developed and enhanced.
Now, it's easier for Wei Wuxian to randomly send things that he found amusing to Yunmeng, or for Jiang Yanli to share some Hunan specialties that Wei Wuxian was unable to get in Gusu.
Lan Xichen chuckled. "Unfortunately it isn't."
"Not from Yunmeng?" Wei Wuxian had a suspicious look on his face. "I don't think I have someone who'll take the trouble of sending me gifts? It shouldn't be from some random Sects again, no?"
"Why do you think some random Sects would send you gifts?"
"So that I can give some good words for them in front of you? Aren't there quite a few gifts prior?"
Lan Xichen laughed as he recalled that kind of things really did happen. Especially after the Hunt in Baifeng Mountain, the gifts sent to Wei Wuxian from random Sects suddenly increased exponentially. After all, in that Hunt, they finally saw how much importance Wei Wuxian had in Lan Xichen's eyes and, consequently his current influence in the Lan Sect itself.
Previously, the female part of the masses admired Wei Wuxian and didn't hide their fascination. The male part, on the contrary, no matter how powerful or infamous Wei Wuxian's reputation was, they treated him with more fear but no respect. Rather, it was dreadful to think someone like him actually possessed such ability.
That said, everything would be different after they saw Wei Wuxian's current situation. As the Ancestors said, it's not uncommon for people to flatter the rich and despise the poor. It's not okay for a mere subordinate to hold so much power. However, if someone who's treated so importantly by a Major Sect possessed the ability, it would be things to be praised and flatter.
"Well...there are also new gifts from some Sects, indeed. But there is quite a hefty sum of gifts here from someone else. Let's stop the guessing game, I will just say it. It's from my Third Brother, Jin Guangyao."
Wei Wuxian raised his brows. "Jin Guangyao? Lianfang-Zun?"
Lan Xichen showed him the letter attached to it. "He said, if you have time someday, he would like to invite you to eat in Qinghe."
He thought for a while and added, "You can accept the invitation, and I don't think he will openly plan something, but considering his past record, just to be safe, let's go with either me or Wangji."
Wei Wuxian laughed. "Will he also bring Chifeng-Zun to attend the invitation and joint force with him to warn me or something?"
Lan Xichen was surprised. "What did they have to warn you for?"
"No, it's just, your two Sworn Brothers, they seemed to give me a weird look whenever they saw me. Chifeng-Zun gave me one during our wedding, and also when he saw us in Baifeng Mountain."
"DaGe has?" Lan Xichen thought about it but he couldn't remember ever seeing Nie Mingjue giving any particular stare to Wei Wuxian.
"As for Lianfang-Zun, the last time he visited here to discuss things with you, I happened to pass by with him at the front gate, and he greeted me, 'Wei-Gongzi, are you going to have grilled stinky tofu from Hunan Restaurant in Caiyi Town again?' I was surprised, because that day was indeed the day of the week when the restaurant would have spicy grilled stinky tofu on their menu...Was he making fun of me?"
Lan Xichen, "...Oh."
...That, he might actually understand what's going on.
Lan Xichen looked away guiltily. He was the one responsible for shoving all kinds of miscellaneous information about Wei Wuxian to his two Sworn Brothers. As a result, whenever they met Wei Wuxian, they must have been reminded of those random trivialities.
"Forget about it. They don't really have things to say to you. Even if they have, what can they do to you? After all, even if you don't wear clothes, others won't be able to do anything to you." Lan Xichen tried to flatter his husband and divert his attention.
Wei Wuxian, "..."
Being reminded of his past careless remarks was a bit embarrassing. Especially coming from someone who had successfully done "quite a lot of things" to him when he had no clothes on.
Lan Xichen pulled him closer and took out another scroll, "Here, here, let's see the gift list instead."
Wei Wuxian obediently followed the distraction. He took the long list of gifts from Lan Xichen and smacked his lip. As expected of LanlingJin. They're so rich, that even their casual gifts rivaled the amount of total gifts those random Sects had sent him prior.
"Why did he suddenly think to send me gifts? I don't think there is any celebration to require congratulatory gifts?" He looked at Lan Xichen and asked him doubtfully, "You wouldn't misspell the notice sent to him, would you?"
Lan Xichen, "Hmm? What do you mean?"
Wei Wuxian grinned, "Misspelling the words 'I have a Treasure(宝贝)', into 'I have a Baby (宝宝)'? That's why he sent such hefty gifts to congratulate."
Lan Xichen hesitated. "That...I don't think I would have misspelled..."
However, if that wasn't the case, why did Jin Guangyao send Wei Wuxian so many gifts all of a sudden?
Jin Guangyao in Lanling,
"If it weren't for Wei Wuxian occupying my whole mind, I would have already rolled in the sheet with my half-sister. I hate to admit it, but I owe you this one. That being said, stop telling me your private matters! At this rate, I'll still have difficulties even in my future blind date!"