Work Text:
They are so like them…
The thought had come upon him suddenly. An old memory breaking through the walls of his mind, as he watched his nephew and his husband following after their toddling child. Lan Yuan had just begun to walk, and during this visit to his grand uncle, Lan Yuan had almost fallen on his head at the speed he attempted to get out of Wangji’s grasp so he could stand on his own. Wangji hovered behind him, hands outstretched towards his child. Wei Wuxian on the other hand, stayed back, only keeping one hand out for Lan Yuan to grasp to keep him steady. This scene...it was so eerily familiar to one he had seen so long ago. The way the memory had come upon him so suddenly had almost made him choke on his tea.
He had had the (mis)fortune of meeting the great rogue cultivator Cangse Sanren on more than one occasion (the memory of losing the first beard he had grown so painstakingly still burned into his mind), though in his memories there had been only one opportunity for Lan Qiren to meet the small family she had created before fate cruelly took parents away, leaving their one child behind.
He had gone on a nighthunt, taking along with him some juniors who had stayed behind at the inn to begin formulating a plan while Lan Qiren went out again to see if he could gain any more last minute information. His two nephews were left with their very capable wet nurse while he was gone. Wangji was already at the point where he chose to follow behind his older brother now, his once unsteady steps now filled with more confidence as he trailed behind his brother like a duckling. Lan Qiren already knew there was no chance that his brother would leave his seclusion even for a few days to care for his sons, and their mother? Well...He didn’t want to think about her.
As always, he heard Cangse Sanren before he saw her. Her loud, boisterous laughter was distinct and familiar, despite the years it had been since they had last seen each other. As sure as the sun rising, he saw the blur of white and red soon after hearing her laugh. She was running towards him, hand held up high in greeting. Behind her, a man was trailing at a slower pace, and a bundle secure in his arms. His robes were the familiar color of Yunmeng Jiang’s violet, and Lan Qiren quickly identified him. Wei Changze. He had met him less times than he had Cangse Sanren, but he knew this must be Jiang Fengmian’s right hand man, the one he had said had left the sect after he married.
“Qiren! What’s an old fuddy duddy like you doing so far away from Gusu!” Cangse Sanren’s voice boomed and rattled his eardrums as she skidded to a halt next to him. Only by pointingly ignoring her did he realize that the bundle in Wei Changze’s arms was a wriggling child. Wide silver eyes looked up at Lan Qiren with the utmost curiosity, the baby’s small body began wriggling even faster as he tried to get a look at this stranger that his mother was trying to annoy.
Wei Changze immediately set the boy down on the ground. He seemed to be some months younger than Wangji, still unsteady on his chubby legs. He clung to his father’s robes for support while simultaneously reaching out and taking small steps towards Lan Qiren. He babbled to himself as Cangse Sanren cooed over her son.
“Awww, my little Ying-er likes you!” She bumped their shoulders together, Lan Qiren quickly taking a step away from her and furrowing his brows at her, but she took it in stride. “I guess there had to be at least one person who likes you~” She continued to tease as she bent down and scooped up her son and pressing him to her chest.
This did not seem to please Wei Ying, and his wriggling returned in full force as his tiny hands pushed away at his mother. “Baba! Baba!” He cried and held his arms towards Wei Changze, even grasping for a few moments at Lan Qiren who was standing closer to them.
Cangse Sanren let out a pitiful whine as Wei Changze took their child back into his arms and set him resolutely back onto the ground again. After making sure the boy was firmly against his own legs he bowed to Lan Qiren. “Apologies for not greeting you properly, Sect Leader Lan.”
Finally, some manners. Though he did want to scoff at the title given to him by Wei Changze, he couldn’t deny that the person who was meant to be sect leader was currently hiding away in seclusion. He schooled the distaste on his face and returned the bow to the man. “It’s good to see your family in good health. Sect Leader Jiang had mentioned at the last sect conference that you had married.”
The polite conversation had continued after that, as Wei Changze supplied what information he knew about the resentful spirits that were plaguing the town. It was not much different than what Lan Qiren already knew, but it was good to get confirmation from another cultivator, and especially if that other cultivator wasn’t Cangse Sanren. She had long since checked out of the conversation, and instead had begun creeping towards Wei Ying, who was eyeing her wearily as he clutched his father’s robes. Out of the corner of his eye, Lan Qiren could see Wei Ying inching away from his mother’s grabby hands. Good boy, he couldn’t help but think. If Wei Ying took after his father, he’d surely be a good and righteous cultivator when he was older.
Though soon after, Lan Qiren felt the heavy weight of a child on his leg when he saw Wei Ying resolutely hiding behind him of all people. It was only then did Cangse Sanren seem to decide to butt back into the conversation, when she looked up at Lan Qiren like he had caused personal insult.
“My own son is betraying me! I joked about him liking you and yet he seemed to take it so seriously!” Cangse Sanren bent down and pinched one of her son’s cheeks. “Look at him hiding behind your robes! He doesn’t want to be in Mama’s arms anymore!”
Wei Changze quickly scooped up Wei Ying into his arms again, the child’s eyes were beginning to droop, his body finally losing the energy to escape his parents as he rested his head against his father’s chest. “He wants to walk, you need to let him burn his energy. You tease Ying-er too much.” He chides his wife gently.
Cangse Sanren pouted. “It was only a little fish! Ying-er was fine afterwards!”
Any squabbling that between the couple that may have started died before it began when their child began squirming again, whimpering against Wei Changze’s chest. It was then that Lan Qiren noticed that it had become dusk without any of the three adults realizing.
Wei Changze turned to look at him. “It must be nearing nine. We will not hold you up anymore sect leader Lan.” He gave a small bow, careful not to jostle Wei Ying. “If you need any assistance in your nighthunt don’t hesitate to call for us.”
Cangse Sanren slung her arm over her husband’s shoulder, any of the fight that had been in her lost now that her attention was elsewhere. “Yeah Qiren! A-Ze and I will be here in town for a few more days! You call us and we’ll solve it easily!” She grinned cheekily at him.
“You should work on getting into your son’s good graces than worrying about helping me with a simple nighthunt.” Lan Qiren answered stiffly, before turning on his heel.
He could only briefly hear a squawk of indignation at his jab and the suppressed sound of laughter before the sound of a baby’s wail overtook them, as Wei Ying’s fussiness finally turned his parents’ attentions away from Lan Qiren back to him, urging their little family to go back to their inn room to rest.
He hadn’t seen either of them again, after that night.
It wasn’t until years later when a Wei Changze in miniature appeared in his class. A Wei Changze with a horrendously familiar smirk and teasing silver eyes who immediately made it his life’s mission to pester his nephew until he got a rise out of him.
He was just like her.
That’s what anyone who had known Cangse Sanren would say. Though those numbers were dwindling, those who knew saw her in him.
And yet, as he watched his own nephew trail sadly after their son with his hands outstretched, the trailing ends of his forehead ribbon momentarily flashed crimson in his mind’s eyes. The soft brown eyes of his grand nephew seemed to look silver as he looked up at his father with distrust as his chubby hand instead gripped tightly onto one of Wei Wuxian’s fingers as he toddled, leading both of them away from Wangji every time he got too near.
With a pitiful cry of “A-die! A-die!” from Lan Yuan, Wei Wuxian chuckled as he scooped up his son into his arms and jokingly turned him away from Wangji as though he were protecting him. “Lan Zhan! You coddle him too much! A-Yuan wants to walk, but you can’t seem to let him leave your arms!”
He...was just like him, too.
Wei Wuxian continued to giggle at the absolutely indignant look on Wangji’s face as A-Yuan buried his face into Wei Wuxian’s shoulder. The utter betrayal of a child retaliating to being suffocated by a parent’s love.
Even when the still mirthful Wei Wuxian and the still disappointed Wangji both bowed to Lan Qiren and bid him goodnight as they took their sleeping child back to the Jingshi, something felt different as he observed their retreating backs. So many years of stubbornly comparing Wei Wuxian’s relationship with Wangji to the absolute failure of a marriage that his brother had, and now, with that single memory that had been tucked away for so long brought to the front of his mind he could only see one thing. Wei Changze and Cangse Sanren were both walking away from him, a small child slumbering in his father’s arms.
They are so, so much like them.