Chapter Text
When Wen Ning bargained his freedom for the safety of everyone else, he thought it would all be over. His debt would have been paid. Wei Wuxian would remain safe in the burial mounds, together with everyone else he had cared for. That was all that Wen Ning had really wished for so he kept still, locked up in his dark cell below the extravagant ponds of Koi Tower.
Down below, it was not unusual for him to hear the guards chattering. One of the guards often boasted about his daughter who had just turned three, how she was such a delight to have and how her smile was enough to light up an entire village. Wen Ning could not really do much in his current state so everyday he listened to their idle talks. Whether it be festivities, family, friends or even foes, he would attentively listen. There were even times that he’d find himself on edge and excited to hear the rest.
But his days weren’t what you’d call spectacular. He was battered and locked up in a cell, sometimes with Madam Jin even screaming at his face for the loss of his son and his daughter-in-law but he had made his peace and whatever else they do to him, he would accept.
That is until he hears the guards whispering among themselves. It had piqued Wen Ning’s interest specifically because these men never bothered to lower their voices before. They’d been quite boisterous, speaking as if he wasn’t even there but today, they chose to lower their voice by a stretch.
“I can’t believe Sect Leader Jin would bring in that Xue Yang here.”
“Didn’t they learn from the Yiling Patriarch? He was bad news. He really did deserve his death and so did those that followed him.”
“You’re right, but it’s not like they’re going to listen to low-ranking chumps like us anyway. Even if we are a thousand times more righteous than our dear sect leader, we can only shut our mouths to keep our jobs.”
Wen Ning still heard the two guards as they exchanged in hushed tones but he could no longer understand what they were saying.
‘Wei Gongzi is dead?’
It takes awhile for the thought to get through him. His heart becomes a mix of mourning and disbelief. The Jins promised him. They struck a deal. But were they truly people who kept their promises? Jin Guangshan was a rather crafty and treacherous man. It was possible. The guards would not lie about it either. They would gain nothing from inciting his anger. In fact, it could even cost them their lives.
But still, for Wen Ning, honorable and kind Wen Ning, he could not believe that promises would be broken so easily. He didn’t want to believe. He had to see everything with his own eyes to believe.
So, he makes a choice to run away. He clenches his fists with all the strength he could muster and breaks away from the chains that bound him. The sound alarmed the guards, bringing them into a fearful panic. Wen Ning, on the other hand, was strong and swift. While they were being indecisive, he breaks out of the room and knocks the two men unconscious.
He gives them a somewhat apologetic look before running off. They were going to lose their jobs pretty soon and he felt bad since one of them was already supporting his daughter while the other was planning his proposal; but he had his own worries to soothe, after all. This was not the time to think of others.
He had to go back to the burial mounds. Surely, Wei Wuxian would be there. Little A-Yuan would be playing with his Chenqing like usual. Everyone would be busy tiling the soil and planting radishes. They would complain about Wei Wuxian’s unreasonably spicy dishes. Maybe, Uncle Four would take over with their finances since Wei Wuxian wasn’t entirely reliable in that aspect either.
He busied himself with soft and blissful thoughts of them as he hid and ran, cautiously, as to not catch the attention of anyone. If only he could see for himself, if only he could find them and see that they were alright, his heart would be at ease.
But when he reaches his destination, he sees nothing but ash and dust, no houses, no plots filled with radishes, no Uncle Four, no A-Yuan and no Wei Gongzi. There was nothing there. It was as if no one lived here at all, like everything had been wiped clean with one fellow swoop.
But that did not mean they were gone, right?
Perhaps, they left because the soil was just that bad. They may have simply relocated elsewhere, he thought. He had to look for them.
Wei Gongzi can’t be dead.
The only family he had left can’t be dead.
The Jins are one of the four great sects. They had to uphold their promises, right?
These are the thoughts he repeated to himself as he ran from forest to forest, not wavering even for a second. Fierce corpses do not need rest or food or water or shelter. He did not pay any mind to the leaves and branches that stuck on to his hair and garments. He had to find them. He had to, but the more places he passes through, the lesser hope he is left with. Each step was a step that did not lead him back to them. Each step felt like a mistake, a whimsical yearning for his past life and the people that once surrounded him.
Each step led him nowhere.
But each step also led him to where he was now.
Time. Day. Place. He did not know. He did not really care. How long has he ran? How far has he gone? These are questions he could not even answer himself. He really did not have a reason to stop and think in the first place. He vowed to find them and find them he shall, unwavering, unstoppable and without a second to waste.
But tonight, he finds himself coming to a halt for the first time.