Chapter Text
“A-Xian, we found out about your core,” Jiang Yanli begins. They’re in Wei WuXian’s, sitting around his bed. Wen Qing had told him Wei WuXian would be fine but they had still asked her to check his condition for the past few days until they returned home to Lotus Pier. Wei WuXian takes a sharp inhale. Jiang Cheng doesn’t look at him, instead, he’s staring off into the distance with his shoulders tense. Already she knows this conversation won’t go without loud voices.
“Why didn’t you tell us the truth?” She can see Wei WuXian trying to avoid her gaze again, so she grabs his hands firmly and turns him so that he can’t.
“A-Xian.”
“No one was supposed to know...I just didn’t want anyone to worry,” Wei WuXian says at last. Jiang Yanli notices he’s avoiding Jiang Cheng’s gaze the same way Wen Qing had been doing that night.
“You were thrown in the Burial Mounds without a core?” Jiang Yanli’s voice tightens.
“Yes...but I found a way out. I didn’t change my cultivation for no reason.”
“What else are you not telling us?” Jiang Cheng finally speaks, locking his gaze with Wei WuXian’s.
“Jiang Cheng…”
“I got my core back around the same time you lost yours. Don’t think I haven’t put together the pieces. Wen Qing told me to ask you the reason myself.”
“Well…” Wei WuXian exhales. “There’s no reason for me to hide it anymore. Wen Qing helped me perform a core transfer.” Jiang Yanli’s hold on Wei WuXian tightens involuntarily. She takes Jiang Cheng’s hand in her other hand. She can feel his fist clenching up, but when she squeezes it, the tension releases ever so slightly.
“It was the only way...to help Jiang Cheng. He was the future sect leader...I had no choice…” Wei WuXian’s voice is shaking now and Jiang Yanli automatically pulls him close to her. She tugs Jiang Cheng close as well until they’re all sitting on the bed.
“You lied to me about the mountain and Baoshan Sanren.” His voice is oddly calm, but Jiang Yanli hears the strain behind it from where she is next to him.
“Yes...Wen Qing was the one on that mountain. With Wen Ning.”
“You should have told me.”
“If I did, you would have never agreed to it,” Wei WuXian says pointedly.
“No...of course not. You’re my brother . Why would I-,” Jiang Cheng pauses, his usual annoyance and anger flickering in his eyes. “ Idiot .” He bites out.
“A-Cheng,” Jiang Yanli chides. The anger in his eyes flickers but doesn’t die out. He takes a deep breath.
“Well,” He begins. “All three of us are crazy self-sacrificing idiots. Me included!”
“Huh? What did you do?” Wei WuXian blinks. “You’re not even reckless.”
“Me? Well, honestly maybe it wasn’t stupid. The Wen soldiers were going to catch you so I averted their attention and ran so that they chased me! How was I supposed to know you would do what you did?” Jiang Cheng’s voice rises in volume and Jiang Yanli hurriedly takes both his hands in hers.
“You distracted the Wens?” She keeps her voice gentle and steady. “Is that why you ended up back in Lotus Pier?”
“Jiang Cheng…” Wei WuXian’s voice sounds small now.
“Yes. Why would I stupid enough to go back for our parents’ body? I may not have been in my right state of mind then, but I wasn’t going to let them hurt you!”
“A-Cheng, you never told us this either,” Jiang Yanli says, her voice beginning to tremble. “Both of you...why do you try to hold everything all in? You’re brothers and you’re family. As your big sister, you know you can tell me anything, right? So why…” Her voice chokes into sobs and immediately both her brothers wrap their arms around her shoulders.
“Shijie...don’t cry…”
“A-jie…”
“No..you two. All of us...we need to talk to one another, okay? We’re family . We’re the closest three in the world, remember? No matter what. We shouldn't hide things from one another. We should be there for one another no matter how hard it is...we already went through the worse and we’ll make it through even worse things if we have to.” Jiang Yanli thinks of the future she had prevented and the new one she had gained. She had only been able to change it because she had put her foot down and stood up to protect her brother.
“Yes, Shijie...we’ll do that from now,” Wei WuXian says quietly. Jiang Cheng lets out a deep sigh and nods as well.
“Would you believe me….if I told you I got sent back in time?” Jiang Yanli says slowly. Her two brothers stare at her with a puzzled look.
So she tells them. She tells them about the past timeline, about Jin ZiXuan’s death, Jin ZiXun’s ambush, how Jin Guangyao was most likely the one to have told him about the curse mark and provoked him to do the ambush, how the Wens were massacred. With each detail, she can see her brothers’ distress and shocked expressions.
“I don’t know how it happened, but I won’t ask anymore. I’m glad it happened the way it did. I...prevented lives from being lost and was able to make a difference.”
“Shijie,” Wei WuXian breathes out.
“We all took our risks, didn’t we?” She lets out a soft laugh. “I practically stormed into Carp Tower with a bunch of Wens by my side and gave Jin Guangshan quite a mouthful. I never...I never thought I was capable of such a thing.”
“I still remember the look on his face,” Wei WuXian says gleefully.
“You’re our mother’s daughter,” Jiang Cheng says as if it was the most obvious thing ever.
He’s right. I’m the daughter of the Violet Spider. I won’t and shouldn’t be taken lightly...especially when anyone tries to hurt my family.
~
“Shiije, how do I look?” Jiang Yanli turns to take in the sight of her brother in his red wedding gown. She lets out a gasp of delight and awe.
“A-Xian, you look beautiful! A-Cheng and I really picked out the perfect gown for you!” She exclaims, turning her brother around to get a better look at him from different angles.
“Jiang Cheng helped too?”
“Yes, I helped, idiot,” Jiang Cheng replies. “ If I hadn’t, A-jie would have spent the entire day in the store trying to pick out the perfect gown for you, which is what she did, except it was for only half a day.”
“Hmph, Shijie’s choice will always be the best.” Wei WuXian declares. “Now I wonder what Lan Zhan’s robes look like. I wish I could go see him, but I can’t,” He sighs.
“Just be patient and wait for another day. We’ll be leaving for Cloud Recesses by tomorrow morning anyway.” Jiang Cheng grumbles, hitting him on the shoulders.
“Was Pea-, was Jin ZiXuan this patient at his own wedding?” Wei WuXian inquires.
“How should I know? I wasn’t with him!”
“From what I’ve heard,” Jiang Yanli says with a chuckle. “He was quite nervous and jittery.”
“Who told you that, A-jie?” Jiang Cheng blinks at her in surprise.
“Madam Jin...and Lady Luo has told me all the times about how A-Xuan felt around me, even before he properly courted me,” Jiang Yanli continues. A devious smile crosses Wei Wuxian’s face.
“Does this mean I can ask MianMian if he’s had any embarrassing childhood stories?”
“Wei WuXian!” Jiang Cheng hits him again.
“It’s just a suggestion! And I know you want to hear them just as much as I do, Jiang Cheng!” Jiang Yanli watches fondly at her brother’s bickering.
“You two have plenty of embarrassing childhood stories too. Wouldn’t it only be fair if we exchange them?” Jiang Yanli’s smile turns teasing. Both her brothers turn to her with a gaping expression.
“A-jie!”
“Shijie!”
“I’m only joking,” She laughs.
“Wait, but Jiang Cheng definitely cried during the wedding, didn’t he? I know he did-, ouch!” Wei WuXian rubs his shoulder where Jiang Cheng had smacked him.
“You! Shut it!” He snaps. Wei WuXian responds by sticking his tongue out at him.
She leaves Wei WuXian’s room to assist in the kitchen. The maids of the house were bustling back and forth. The ceremony would be held at Cloud Recesses while the banquet would be held in Lotus Pier. Typically, both would be held at the sect that Wei WuXian was marrying into, but Lan Wangji had, of course, wanted to treat his husband to a banquet full of his favorite spicy food rather than a bland one at Cloud Recesses.
Both her brothers and husband had told her that as a Madame of Carp Tower now, she did not need to trouble herself with cooking for others, especially when she had Jin Ling to take care of too. But she couldn’t bring herself to not cook something for her brother’s own wedding. So, she had left Jin Ling in the care of her mother-in-law. Wen Qing and Wen Ning are there as well, helping to cook up a few dishes. Luo Qingyang is in the kitchen, making special dishes that are specific to Lanling palette, but she finds her way to add douses of spice into it as well, the way Wei WuXian likes it.
Jiang Yanli makes two different versions of her soup: one with the ribs and a vegetarian version for the Lan guests. She cooks these dishes without any of the usual spices of Yunmeng cuisine. The smell of spices was very unusual for Lan disciples, especially with their much less flavorful palette. She could have sworn she saw Lan Qiren’s eyebrows twitching at the sight of so much red in the dishes, but as it was his nephew’s wedding, he had to tolerate it. Suddenly there was a small commotion outside.
“A-Yuan, no running in Cloud Recesses,” comes the sound of Lan Wangji’s voice followed by an excited squeal of a child. Jiang Yanli only smiles fondly and works on cooking.
The next few days passed by quickly but all preparations were done. Jiang Yanli holds her son, who had been brought by her husband the day before, close to her as they make their way towards the grand hall. A-Yuan was being held by Wen Qing, squirming excitedly in her arms.
“Aunt Qing, put me down. I want to go see A-Yi!” He complains.
“No making noises, A-Yuan,” Wen Qing says scoldly. “You can see him afterwards. Remember what I told you today?” The child immediately subdues and nods.
“Yes..I need to be on my best behavior so I don’t disturb Xian-gege’s and Rich-gege’s big day,” He says quietly.
“That’s correct, now let’s sit down , shall we?” Wen Qing sits with the rest of her family. Jiang Yanli takes her seat next to Jin ZiXuan. Soon Lan Wangji and Wei WuXian come into the hall and the ceremony with the three bows begins.
“First bow, to the heavens and the Earth.” A Lan sect elder speaks the words for the ceremony.
Wei WuXian and Lan Wangji bow together
“Second bow, to the ancestors.”
They bow to the ancestral hall.
“Third bow, to each other.”
And they did so, their eyes shining with a joy that Jiang Yanli can even make out in Lan Wangji’s eyes. She feels tears of joy slipping out of her eyes and she can see Jiang Cheng blinking rapidly as if to hide the fact that he was crying too, the same he had done during Jiang Yanli’s own wedding. The ceremony ends and the banquet begins. A-Yuan finally gets the chance to run to his soon to-be parents. His new friend, a disciple by the end of Lan Jingyi, chats loudly with him while A-Yuan quickly brings his new friend to be introduced to his family.
“Uncle Four, Granny, this is my friend, Jingyi! We’re going to study hard together and be the best cultivators ever! Just like Xian-gege and Rich-gege!” Wei Yuan says excitedly. On one side of the room, Jiang Yanli catches sight of Jiang Cheng speaking with Wen Qing, his feet shuffling ever so slightly. On the other side, Jiang Yanli can make out her other brother complaining to his husband. From where she sits, she can tell it had something to do with Wei Yuan’s surname.
“ Lan Zhan , why can’t he be a ‘Wei’ like me? He’s my son, I mean he’s our son now, but I want mini ‘Wei’ running around Cloud Recesses!”
“Running is forbidden in Cloud Recesses,” Lan Wangji replied calmly. “And a child takes on his father’s surname.”
“We’re both fathers,” Wei WuXian grumbles.
“You told me you birthed A-Yuan yourself and he also says you’re his mother.”
Wei WuXian gapes at him.
“He says what ? He still calls me ‘Xian-gege’ though!”
Just as he says this, Wei Yuan calls out “A-Niang! Come meet Jingyi!” This earns him several disapproving looks from the Lan elders present, but the young child takes no notice of them, pulling his friend along as he introduces him to Wei WuXian,
Jiang Yanli watches everything, her heart feeling warm and calm. The journey here had been tough and the journey into the future didn’t seem certain either. However, in the end, everything had worked out and however tough it will be, she will be able to get through it together with her family.