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While Lan Wangji does not exactly feel joy when confronted with the anxieties his uncle and brother feel when faced with the thought of his future marriage - just a faint feeling of amusement from time to time - it does make things easier.
Namely, the bunnies.
When Lan Wangji first comes back from a meeting with the Yiling Wei Sect Leader holding two fat rabbits, one white and one black, his uncle's first reaction is to quote the rules regarding keeping pets to him – an impulse that the adult immediately regrets if the look on his face is anything to go by.
Lan Qiren takes his eyes off Wangji and turns to Xichen, who is tugging on his sleeve in a way the teenager thinks is subtle but very much isn't. Xichen then starts to furiously murmur things into his ear.
Wangji is okay with letting them whisper amongst themselves and stands there, gently petting the bunnies in his arms. They're so small and soft - and he had petted a lot of bunnies in his old life. He doesn't know how long Wei Ying took to find such soft bunnies.
"He should have a happy childhood – who knows what will happen to him during his life in Yiling? What if he ends up locked in a small room, away from people and nature, only left with rabbits to keep him company?"
"Yes, yes... One shouldn't indulge, but the hardships Wangji will face should be compensated for... And, if Wei Wuxian doesn't want to foot the cost of feeding him, knowing how to raise and breed rabbits might be useful – him keeping them here would be educational..."
"The furs might be able to keep him warm during the winter as well, he would be able to huddle with the rabbits..."
Lan Wangji wants to bury his face in the furs in front of him, but he'll have to wait. He can't do that in front of Uncle – it isn't acceptable behavior by his standards - and if he does it in front of Xichen-xiong it will just comfort his brother in the idea that Wangji is still a small child, which isn't in Wangji's interest. He'll just have to hold himself back until he's back in the jingshi.
Both his brother and uncle had already been ruffled enough when Wei Ying had kidnapped him to go pick lotus seeds together. He doesn't want to put too much stress on their bodies... Him having just snuck out to see his husband will already have done enough damage, he thinks. Shocking them with this uncouth display would not do any good.
It was very kind of Wei Ying to catch him rabbits again. He has missed his fluffy, calm companions: their presence had helped him through the harshest times in his life. Spending time with Wei Ying again has led him to miss his husband, and the quiet that he enjoyed so readily in the past no longer feels as comforting. The bunnies will absolutely help him when he starts missing Wei Ying too much.
They will also not ask him why he misses a man he knows so little so much – which Wangji still doesn't know how to explain, staying silent each time the question is asked.
Leaving his brother and uncle to their conspiracies, Wangji leaves for the meadow where he used to keep his rabbits during his last life. The rabbits had seemed to enjoy the space, with its many shade trees and wild vegetables. He will eventually have to find wood and build them an enclosure in which to spend the night again, especially once they start breeding, but for now he will just keep them safe from the nocturnal predators with him in the jingshi.
The steps he takes towards the meadow are slow, measured. His breathing is very steady as well. The rabbit's heat can be felt through his clothes, heating small patches of his upper body where he cradles them close.
All of them arrive at the small clearing safe and sound, where Wangji carefully lets the two bunnies down. They look a bit confused and huddle together, not going too far off. He pats their heads with his pointer finger, two times per rabbit, and hurries away to the kitchens to see which vegetables Gusu Lan has in stock.
The rabbits have been very good and deserve treats.
The kitchens turn out not to contain any carrots - but he does find a bunch of leafy greens he knows from experience the bunnies will enjoy. He goes back, holding a small basket in his hands: it contains only the best-looking vegetables. Just enough for the rabbits to finish between the two of them: wasteful use of food is not allowed here. Rule 374.
The rabbits seem to have relaxed in their new environment. The white one is digging near an old tree, stopping to munch on blades of grass when he feels like it. The black one is running around, stopping, starting again, jumping over rocks and anything else he can find that looks like it can be jumped over.
Wangji sits down on the grass and they immediately come over. He had had a bit more difficulty getting the bunnies to trust him the first time around. He was used to it now, had learned how to get along even with the most skittish of individuals.
He yawns. Wei Ying had kept him awake far later than he was used to last night, looking over the lake, glittering under the moonlight while carps came up to much at insects from time to time before diving back into its depths and disappearing from view. He had asked Wei Ying to tell him what had happened: why hadn't Wei Ying been born a few months after him, like in their last life?
Wei Ying hadn't had the answer, but he had talked about his time spent waiting. Wangji had listened and held on to Wei Ying's sleeve as tightly as possible. He had bumped his head lightly against Wei Ying's arm when his husband had eventually finished recounting what he remembered.
Wei Ying had laughed, told him to stop crying, and gifted him the bunnies.
He yawns again. The bunnies are so soft, their noses nibbling at the greens he holds between his fingers, long whiskers tickling him. The sun feels warm. He lays down on his side - just for a few minutes! - the rabbits coming to rest against his belly to start their after-snack nap.
It is like that, laying on his side with rabbits cuddled up next to him, that Lan Xichen comes to find his little brother a few hours later.