Work Text:
Blood. Blood everywhere on his clothes, his hands. Xie lian’s blood. He had washed up and changed a long time back. He could still see the blood. Could still feel it, the warmth of it bleeding into his naturally cold skin. Xie lian in his arms, white robes stained in a stunning red that Hua cheng had vowed to never let happen. And it was all his fault. It was his inattention that got his highness injured like that.
It started out as a regular day. Xie lian and Hua cheng had woken up together at Paradise manor. Xie lian had some prayers to attend to. Hua cheng accompanied him.
“San lang you shouldn’t neglect you duties in ghost city!” Xie lian chided him. Hua cheng was drapped on Xie lian’s back, face buried in his neck.
“I’m not neglecting my duties,” He mumbled, “providing company to my husband is my most important duty.” He pressed kisses into Xie lian’s neck. Xie lian giggled at that, ticklish.
“San lang…” Hua cheng then looked up, the ferocious crimson rain sought flower, looked into his husband’s eyes, and pouted.
“Does gege not want this husband to accompany him?”
Xie lian sighed, long used to his husband’s theatrics. He gave him a quick peck on the lips, dispelling the pout on Hua cheng’s face and said, “Of course not. This husband always yearns for your company. But you need to stop overworking poor yin yu so much ,delegating all your tasks to him.”
“Hmm what if I just give him a raise?”
“…..”
“Gege please won’t you let this husband accompany you? I promise I am not skipping out on any work.”
Xie lian stopped protesting after that. After all he too wanted to be with his husband, and couldn’t deny him anything. “Alright.”
It was a simple prayer. On the outskirts of a relatively small village stood a well. It was well stocked and deep, enough for the usage of the entire village.
But not anymore. Something strange had been occurring within the well.
A week back, the village women had been doing their normal errands, fetching water from the well to bring back home. But when they reached home, they noticed that there was not a drop of water in the pots they had filled at the well. This continued for a week. Every time the women would draw water from the well, and every time it would disappear.
Xie lian believed it to be the work of a local mischievous ghost, playing pranks on the villagers.
On reaching, the two immediately realised that the clear water as seen from above was nothing but an illusion. That explained why the water would disappear.
Xie lian and Hua cheng decided to jump down the well to investigate. As suspected, it was the entrance to some ghost’s lair. The area was dry as a bone, no indication of being connected to a clean and bountiful well.
Hua cheng noticed something peculiar lying in a corner of the place. A blood talisman. He bent down to examine it.
“Gege..” he began before being interrupted by a loud and alarmed “San lang!”
Hua cheng whirled around, but it was too late. He saw the ghost of this lair coming at him, a sword in his hand, coming straight for his heart. Before it could pierce him however, a vision of white blocked it. He stood between the ghost and Hua cheng, the sword buried in his chest.
Hua cheng gave a choked sort of gasp. The pristine white of Xie lian’s robes was quickly dyed a brilliant red.
The ghost drew back his sword and charged again. Without faltering, Xie lian drew his own sword and blocked. Before the ghost could make any other move, he was defeated, bound in place by a certain white silk.
Hua cheng lurched from where he had been frozen towards Xie lian.
“Dianxia..!” He gathered him up in his arms, and quickly rolled the dice. Within seconds they were at paradise manor, him setting Xie lian down as gently as possible on the bed.
The gaping wound stared at him, his failure evident. He loathed himself. 800 years to make himself stronger, 800 years to make himself worthy of standing beside his highness yet what is it worth, if he can’t even protect his god??
He very very gently, placed his hand over the wound, pushing spiritual energy through it.
A hand came to rest on his head. “San lang ah, it’s alright. It’s not that bad.”
Hua cheng didn’t react much other than a small shake of his head and a small almost-sob and focused on healing his highness. The skin knit beneath his palms. His spiritual powers, combined with Xie lian’s newly restored spiritual powers, made sure that the wound was healed in mere seconds.
Yet Hua cheng could not look at Xie lian. He only looked at the place where the wound had once been, still pushing spiritual power through him, healing what had already been healed. The robes were encrusted with blood.
Then woodenly he spoke, “Dianxia must want to take a bath. Just a minute this lowly one will prepare it for you.” And before Xie lian could protest or even say anything, Hua cheng got up and went to the bathroom.
Hua cheng worked mindlessly, trying to keep his hands busy, while his mind replayed the mantra of ‘useless, weak, worthless, useless, weak, worthless, cant even protect dianxia from such a pathetic ghost, weak, dianxia should discard him....’.
A gentle voice called out to him, interrupting the spiel. His eye focused on Xie lian, who had followed him to the bathroom. The bath was ready and Hua cheng was just about to say so when dianxia said, “San lang, come with me.” And then he gently took San lang’s hand and lead him to the steaming tub of hot water.
Hua cheng hated this. His beloved was the one injured, he was the one stabbed. He should be the one getting comforted.
“Shh beloved I know what you much be thinking. But I need you to stop.” Xie lian cupped his face and continued, “It was not your fault okay? It was mine. I was the one who recklessly jumped in front of the ghost’s sword. I just panicked because I thought you might get hurt. And see, I’m fine now! Thanks to my beloved I’m here now, healthy and happy!”
Hua cheng wanted to turn away, to withdraw from Xie lian’s hand (he didn’t deserve them) but couldn’t. He wanted to lean into them. He didn’t do that either. Instead he spoke, in a low, pained voice . “Dianxia shouldn’t have to worry about this lowly one. You should’ve just let the ghost injure me.”
Xie lian frowned. “How could I? San lang, my beloved, you are everything to me. You are the reason for my existence and I love you so so much. So how could I just let that ghost hurt you?”
He pulled Hua cheng into a hug, which he melted in. Tears ran consistently down his face. There was sorrow in his heart, yes, but it was mostly anger that gripped him. Anger at himself, anger at the ghost, anger at his incompetence. But his anger was a cruel, ugly thing. He wouldn’t let his god witness it. He wanted to stab himself, to inflict the sane pain on himself a dozen times over, but he knew Xie lian would not let him. And so he sobbed. He didn’t even realise when Xie lian had carried him out of the tub into their bed.
And that is where he sat now, drained of his tears, watching his gege pull on clothes for bed. Hua cheng too was wearing fresh new clothes courtesy of his highness dressing him, yet he could not unsee the blood on it. For once the colour red was unbearable to him.
Xie lian settled on the bed. “Come here love” he beckoned Hua cheng, who obediently went. He buried his face in Xie lian’s neck, hand straying to the place where the wound was and sending more spiritual energy through it. Xie lian indulged him.
“Gege..”
“Hm?” Xie lian questioned turning his body towards Hua cheng.
“Please don’t ever put yourself in harm’s way for me.”
Xie lian smiled and pecked his forehead. “I won’t as long as San lang promises to keep himself out of harm’s way.”
Hua cheng wasn’t completely happy with this (Gege’s safety is of utmost importance, far above his own.) But he was too tired to argue right now. So he just buried himself deeper in his beloved’s arms and listened to the soothing melody that he was singing.