Chapter Text
Lan Xichen, Lan Zhan and Jin Guangyao were at Vista Hermosa’s Diner, drinking a milkshake. Well at least Lan Xichen and Jin Guangyao were, as Lan Zhan never touched his whenever they went out together. He would never understand why Lan Xichen insisted on buying him one every time. Suddenly, the wind chime at the place clinked as someone opened the door. Jin Guangyao choked up when he saw who it was, but immediately looked down, taking a couple of deep breaths.
“So many beautiful women here in Vista Hermosa and you choose to go find a wife at the capital of all places.” Nie Mingjue approached their table, chest puffed out, hair slicked back. Clearly, he was trying to impress someone. With a flourish he grabbed the chair next to Lan Zhan and sat down.
“Mingjue, you of all people know that Lan Zhan is not leaving to find a wife. Right, Lan Zhan?” said Lan Xichen, trying not to laugh at Nie Mingjue.
“Mn.” If Jin Guangyao didn’t know Lan Zhan as well as he did, he wouldn’t have noticed how uncomfortable the poor guy was.
“Yeah, he wants to study, travel and get to know the world. How romantic!” said Jin Guangyao placing his hands on his chest, hoping to get Nie Mingjue’s attention away from Lan Zhan, to no avail.
“Let’s travel together then!” said Nie Mingjue. “Look, I’m about to finish up my car, just a couple more adjustments and we’re out. Where do you want to go?” Nie Mingjue got closer to Lan Zhan. Lan Zhan pulled away. Okay, now this was getting out of hand. It was no secret between him and Lan Xichen that Nie Mingjue had it bad for Lan Zhan. (I mean, who wouldn’t, the guy was like a supermodel.) But behavior like that between two men was just... wrong.
“Leave him alone, Mingjue. He’s clearly not interested.” Something inside Jin Guangyao’s belly was boiling. It was probably just anger at seeing Nie Mingjue bothering his friend. Or maybe…
“Your uncle is going to die if you leave, Lan Zhan, and I’ll die with him.” Lan Xichen’s voice cut off his train of thought.
“You’re always welcome to visit me” said Lan Zhan, the tiniest of smiles on his face.
“You’re right! And Mingjue can take us in his car to the capital!” Jin Guangyao smiled at Nie Mingjue, trying once again to take Nie Mingjue’s attention away from Lan Zhan. He didn’t spare him a look.
“No no no no, impossible, impossible,” Nie Mingjue shook his head.
“Why not?”
“Because we’ll be traveling the country with Lan Zhan” said Nie Mingjue, placing a hand on top of one of Lan Zhan’s.
“Stop it.” Lan Zhan looked extremely uncomfortable. For some reason Jin Guangyao couldn't stand to look at them anymore.
“Okay, Xichen, let’s leave them alone. We’re clearly the third wheel here...” Jin Guangyao took Lan Xichen’s hand and stood up, he wasn't really going to leave. He would never ditch Lan Zhan like that, he just wanted to create a distraction.
“Don’t be like that, Guangyao. You know how Mingjue is” Lan Xichen kicked Nie Mingjue under the table, hard. Nie Mingjue grit his teeth but didn't drop his smile “you don’t have to take him seriously” Jin Guangyao sighed, and sat back down.
--
Wen Qing couldn’t believe it, she just couldn’t. The one secret, the one secret she couldn’t let anybody know, not Wen Ruohan, not Wei Ying... Not Wen Ning... was out. It was weird to hear the word out loud, and it wasn’t even she who said it, it was Wei Ying. “Lesbian”... The one word that had haunted her for years and still did. The one thing that kept her heart from bursting out of her chest in fear, was the fact that Wei Ying hadn’t looked at her with disgust, or anger. He just looked... scared, confused. But there was no hate in his eyes when he stopped the car and helped her get out. There was no hate in his eyes when he looked at her as she paced back and forth on the empty road. But where there was no hate, fear took its place.
“No no no no, you can’t be serious, Miss. You must be joking” he finally spoke up, running his hands through his hair.
“You think I would joke about something like this?” Her intended yell came out in the form of a whisper.
“But Miss Wen, I was the one who used to bring the men in this same car for you to meet. There were so many, it looked like a parade sometimes!” Ah, the men. So many men knocking on her door, so many awkward dinners with Wen Ruohan, Wen Ning, herself, and the poor chosen boy of that day licking up Wen Ruohan’s boots to try and make a good impression. So many rejections, broken hearts, and roses out in the trash. So many fake smiles that made her face hurt at the end of the day. She didn’t miss it.
“Well yeah, I did that just so that Wen Ruohan wouldn’t suspect a thing.” She crossed her arms, bitter that she even had to put up an effort in hiding her... condition.
“You did a great job then, because I sure didn’t notice anything.” Wen Qing couldn’t help but snort a little at Wei Ying’s words. He wouldn’t have noticed even if she had run off and married a woman.
“Why do you think I like to travel so much? Even when Wen Ning isn’t with me?” she paused; she felt her throat get tighter “Because that way I can be free. But here, here I’m trapped again. And I’m just not ready to confront Wen Ruohan and tell him that I don’t like men. He’s never going to accept that, ever. And he’ll take my little brother away from me for good this time.” Her eyes stung, she took a couple of deep breaths closing her eyes tight to keep the tears from falling.
“Okay, shh” Wei Ying hugged her tight, patting her back “don’t cry, don’t cry.”
“It’s just... Just think about it, Wei Ying. Wen Ruohan and that man in Vista Hermosa came to an agreement, that I was to woo that man’s nephew. And he doesn’t even care if I want to or not” she wiped her tears with her sleeve, trying not to get them on Wei Ying’s clothes “And of course, there’s a lot of money in between.”
“Money?” Wei Ying pulled away to look at her.
“Of course, Wei Ying. This is a very important business for Wen Ruohan” she got out of the hug and looked at Wei Ying directly in the eye “Wei Ying... Wen Ruohan is about to go to ruin. And if I don’t make that man fall in love with me, we’ll all end up on the streets.” The truth was out, two secrets revealed to Wei Ying in one day. He looked thoughtful, confused and scared. Then he gasped.
“...What about Wen Ning?” Of course sweet Wei Ying would think about Wen Ning first. There was a reason why Wen Qing loved him as much as she loved her brother.
“I assume he’ll end up in the streets in whatever country Wen Ruohan sent him off to. We might never see each other again.” Wen Ruohan was always playing with them both, forcing them to travel to two different countries while making communication almost impossible for months at a time. If Wen Ruohan ran out of money while Wen Ning was still out who knows where, Wen Qing would lose contact with him forever.
“So... What do we do now, boss?” asked Wei Ying, placing a hand on the back of his neck.
“I don’t know. All I know is that I can’t go back home” she ran her hands through her hair, pulling a little, trying to ground herself.
“Wait, just let me... let me think.” Wei Ying walked away from Wen Qing, scratching his nose “I’m really good at that” Wen Qing snorted, yeah right.
Wen Qing looked down at her red pants, her pink blouse, ran her hands down her torso, studying her own frame. Then looked at Wei Ying, his petite body, his long legs. Maybe, just maybe…
“Maybe there is something we could do.”
Wen Qing chased Wei Ying down the empty road, stripping him of his clothes piece by piece. Finally managed to grab him by the collar and shoved him into the car. Wei Ying tried to make an escape through the window but failed miserably. They both struggled to switch clothes in the confined space. Arms and legs and butts poking out the windows, the car moved side to side…
--
Everyone was gathered around the small stage built in the center of the plaza, clapping as the new queen of Vista Hermosa was crowned. Lan Qiren felt a little jealous, he knew for a fact that if Jiang Yanli had presented herself for the contest, the other girls would not have stood a chance, but sweet little Yanli was too shy and too modest for that sort of thing. He wished he was the girl’s father, wished he had raised her to love herself as much as she loved others. But that was not the case, and now, now it was his time to shine.
“Now, it is time to award the best cheese of Vista Hermosa!!” Said the presenter “Please, welcome to the stage Miss Yi and Mister Qiren!” He quickly got on the stage, followed closely by Lan Yi. Everyone around them clapped.
“Okay, so... the award for the best cheese goes to...”
Everyone held their breath, mostly just for show; a drummer made a drumroll. Lan Qiren stepped forward ready to receive the award. Just like every year.
“Miss Yi!!” Lan Qiren’s jaw hit the floor. The crowd exploded. Lan Yi immediately gave the presenter a hug and accepted the medal. Lan Qiren could see Lan Yi’s little minions in the crowd; Lan Xichen and Jiang Cheng, high-five each other. Lan Qiren got off the stage and walked straight towards Wen Zhuliu, fuming from the ears.
“What happened, my friend? You win this contest every year.” Wen Zhuliu placed a hand on Lan Qiren’s shoulder.
“Let her be. One time means nothing.” He looked towards Lan Yi on the stage, still fuming.
“I’m so glad. Aunt Yi has wanted this award for such a long time.” Said Lan Xichen.
“You’re right! I’m so proud of you, Miss Yi!!” yelled Jiang Cheng.
Lan Yi blew a kiss in their direction. The presenter handed her the mic. She took a couple of deep breaths, ready to give her speech.
“This medal is so much more than an award for the best cheese of the village. This medal is an award for effort, and teamwork. And all I have to say is: Thank you! Thank you to my nephew Xichen, who’s always been there with me. Thank you to my loyal Jiang Cheng, and...”
--
Wen Qing was panicking, her hands gripping the car wheel unbelievably tight. Cold sweat ran down her spine. Back on the open road it had been easy, with Wei Ying guiding her, the car moved at her will. But now the streets were so much narrower, there were people walking around, other cars, lampposts, and so, so much noise it was overwhelming. She closed her eyes to shut it all out just for a second when she heard Wei Ying screaming in her ear, but it was too late. They crashed.
“What have I done? What have I done...” whatever she crashed into no longer was. There were broken wooden planks everywhere and... cheese?
“Now you’ve done fucked up, Miss Wen” whispered Wei Ying from the backseat. Wen Qing realized that he had a hand on her chest. Probably what stopped her from splitting her head open against the car wheel. She smiled, but immediately realized what he just called her.
“Shh! Don’t call me that name” Wen Qing turned around in her seat and looked at Wei Ying. Her clothes were a bit too tight on him, the blouse just a tiny bit see through, but he looked marvelous with his hair and makeup all done. “Remember, from now on, you’re the boss and I’m the butler. Got it?” she put her hand on top of the one Wei Ying still had on her chest reassuringly. Wei Ying shook his head and took his hand back. Wen Qing felt betrayed.
“But who’s going to believe that? Just look at me!“ he gestured to all of himself as if he was the biggest joke.
“Shut up! You look gorgeous. Now, we need to get out of the car, c’mon”
“Nonono...” Wei Ying moved away from her, towards the opposite door, but when he tried to open it, it wouldn't budge. Wen Qing inhaled through her nose, trying to keep calm.
“Get. Out. Or I’ll make you get out” when Wen Qing got out of the car she stepped on something soft and kind of slippery, looking down she realized that it was cheese, a lot of it just... spread all over the ground. Side stepping the cheese, she reached Wei Ying and pulled him out of the car by his foot. Suddenly a woman ran up to where most of the cheese seemed to be coming from in all the ruckus.
“My stand! Look how you’ve left my poor stand! All my work on the floor!” she cried; her hands reached out to one of the wooden planks that made up the stand. Wen Qing let go of Wei Ying and approached her.
“I’m sorry, so sorry! It was an accident.” Wen Qing immediately apologized.
“How was it an accident?! You ran right into my stand!” exclaimed the woman, pointing an accusing finger at Wen Qing.
“Nonono, look. It was my fault, all my fault” Wen Qing tried to keep her calm by grabbing her pointing hand with both of hers. It seemed to work for a moment, but then Wei Ying approached with his hands full of cheese.
“Here miss, these weren’t damaged. You can still sell them.” He handed them to the woman with a smile, making her take her hand away from Wen Qing’s, grabbing all the cheese.
“... what? How do you expect me to—” she gaped at Wei Ying. Wen Qing face palmed so hard she saw little lights behind her eyelids.
“No, Nonono... what my boss is trying to say is that she has no trouble taking full responsibility for the damaged cheese.” Wen Qing put a hand on Wei Ying’s shoulder and squeezed, hard. “Again, I’m really sorry, I got distracted while talking to my boss.” The lie rolled down her tongue smoothly. “She is Miss Wen Qing...” a loud “Aha!” from someone in the crowd surrounding them interrupted her presentation.
“Wen Qing!” exclaimed a man, Wen Qing had a guess of who he might be “Welcome, girl! Welcome! I was waiting for you.” He eyed Wei Ying up and down, Wen Qing’s heart got stuck in her throat, and Wei Ying didn’t seem to be doing any better either. The man then put both hands on Wei Ying’s shoulders, “Wen Qing in the flesh!” Wen Qing let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding. “I see that you wanted to make quite an entrance. Such a disaster.” Lan Qiren gestured to what was left of the stand and laughed, Wei Ying laughed too, nervously, “I want you to meet my nephew.” Qiren turned around, immediately Wei Ying started his escape but Wen Qing quickly stopped him, giving him a stern look “Lan Zhan! Come over here.” A young, beautiful man came out of the crowd surrounding the mess and approached Lan Qiren “My boy, this is Wen Qing.“ He turned around and saw that Wei Ying was trying to leave “Miss Wen, please!” Wen Qing forced Wei Ying to turn around, he and Lan Zhan looked at each other. Wen Qing could tell that Wei Ying was immediately entranced. Lan Qiren turned to Lan Zhan while gesturing towards Wei Ying “She was raised by Wen Ruohan, my friend from the capital.” Wei Ying walked towards Lan Zhan slowly, as if he was sleepwalking “She’s just arrived from Paris. She’s very well-traveled.” Wei Ying extended a hand in greeting towards Lan Zhan, smiling, completely captivated. Wen Qing was torn between face palming at Wei Ying’s stupidity, or fist bumping at her plan working out WAY better than she expected.
“Mn. Interesting way of arriving to the village. I’m Lan Zhan.” he looked at the woman’s destroyed stand with the coldest stare Wen Qing had ever seen in a person, leaving Wei Ying with his hand extended. Oops, the plan might not work out that well.
“Now I understand everything!” the woman yelled.
“Uuuuughhh...” exclaimed Lan Qiren. The two seemed to have history.
“I can’t believe you want to sabotage me like this! How could you?!” She pointed accusingly at him, getting right in his face.
“Please, what are you talking about? Why are you so paranoid?” he put his hands on her shoulders and pushed her away.
“Paranoid? Paranoid?!” she wasn't having it and got right in his face again.
“It was just an accident.”
“The one day with most sales of the year! And you run down my stand with a car?!” she gestured toward to what’s left of her stand.
“It was an accident!” Lan Qiren insisted.
“This was all planned, I’m sure of it!” she pointed at him, almost booping his nose.
“Shut up and enjoy your award!” he took a medal the woman was holding and hanged it around her neck. She gaped at him.
“You coward!”
“Miss Wen, let’s go please.” He completely ignored the woman, then looked at Wen Qing “Girl! Grab the baggage and follow us” it didn't feel as weird as she expected to receive orders like that, probably thanks to Wen Ruohan’s sweet way of barking orders at her her entire life. Wei Ying tried to escape again but Lan Qiren grabbed him by the arm. “C’mon Miss Wen” Wen Qing looked back at the mess she'd made.
“Excuse me?” she asked Lan Qiren “Do I leave the car here?” she gestured awkwardly towards the car.
“Don’t worry about it. Just give me the keys.” She dug into Wei Ying’s coat pocket and fished out the keys, handing them to Lan Qiren “Mingjue!” a man with a moustache came out of the crowd “Take it to your garage and make it shine” Lan Qiren gave him the keys, the man looked confused but took them anyways. Lan Qiren grabbed Wei Ying and started walking. Wen Qing hurried to grab all the baggage from the trunk. Now she regretted packing so much.
“What about my cheese?” asked the woman. Everyone turned around to look at her.
“Uuuuughhh miss please, stop complaining already! You will get older that way.” Wen Qing heard Lan Qiren laugh mischievously while she tried to balance all the baggage on her hands “Miss Lan Yi,” he introduced her to Wei Ying, "she’s all kinds of messed up. And you destroyed her stand.” Wen Qing approached as fast as she could with all the baggage.
“Mn.” Lan Zhan wouldn't stop looking at Wei Ying as they walked. Wen Qing started internally freaking out. Had he seen through the disguise? Was it the hair? The makeup? Wen Qing knew she shouldn’t have chosen a see-through blouse that day. Poor Wei Ying looked like he’d seen a dead body. Wen Qing tripped with the baggage as they approached what seemed to be the biggest house in the village.
--
Lan Xichen, Jin Guangyao, and Jiang Cheng were looking in the direction the group left.
“Such pretty women, they look like movie stars” said Lan Xichen.
“Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful.” Whispered Jin Guangyao
“They are so hot” said Jiang Cheng.
“I don’t think they’re that big of a deal” said Nie Mingjue, frowning.