Chapter Text
Jiang Cheng shivered as he pulled a woolly outer robe tighter around himself, trying to shield his trembling body from the cold gust of air brushing against his cold skin. He walked through the training grounds, in the dead of the night, to the music of the chirping cicadas and the croaking frogs. It was way past his bed time but for the life of him, he could not fall asleep. His restlessness had made him put on his clothes and take a walk in the silence of the night.
He hummed a soft tune, a lullaby to be specific, that his sister used to sing for him and his brother, Wei Wu Xian. Ah, his brother. As much as Jiang Cheng wanted to deny it, he missed his brother. It had been three years since the fateful day at the Guanyin Temple and he wasn’t proud to say that his relationship with his brother still remained in constraints. And the fact that his estranged brother had run off and eloped with the cold Jade of Gusu, absolutely did not help. He knew for a fact that Lan Wang Ji hated him. And honestly, it was in his right to hate him. Hell, Jiang Cheng hated himself. Many a times, he had found himself penning a letter to his brother, only to seal it away in the deepest drawer in the darkest corner of his room.
He sighed tiredly. One day he would just have to gather the courage to approach his brother. He had already lost sixteen years. What’s a few more?
His thoughts had brought him almost halfway through the pier when something at the end of the pier caught his eye and he froze. No, it wasn’t something. It was someone. He ran towards the unconscious body and as he reached closer he could make out the pale blue Hanfu and a headband on the man’s forehead, glinting in the moonlight and the mere fact that somebody from Gusu Lan was lying unconscious on his pier made him dash.
“What the fuck?” he muttered as he stared at the unconscious man whose identity was now confirmed to be the First Jade of Lan aka Zewujun aka Lan Xi Chen. He immediately checked for a pulse and the soft patters he felt below his fingers made him heave a sigh of relief. Gusu Lan would have definitely had his head if something had happened to their precious Jade on his territory. He tried patting Lan Xi Chen’s wet cheek a few times which was unusually cold only to receive no response. He hurriedly lifted the man in his arms and rushed to the infirmary. He could not help but think about how light Lan Xi Chen was considering his height and build but then again, considering their disgustingly bland pathetic excuse of a food, it shouldn’t have come to him as a shock.
He opened the doors of the infirmary with a bang and the healer on call woke up with a start and a short scream.
“Something is wrong with him,” Jiang Cheng began as he immediately placed the cold body on the bed nearest to the fireplace and began undoing the man’s robes after realizing that he was drenched. Drenched in what, he didn’t know. It hadn’t rained and unless Lan Xi Chen had decided to take a swim in the cold waters of Lotus Pier in the middle of the fucking night, he shouldn’t have been wet. “Found him at the edge of the pier. I can feel his Qi but he’s unconscious. No injuries in sight.”
The healer, having just realized that the man his sect leader had just carried in was none other than the esteemed Zewujun, immediately sprang into action. “Get me a pair of dry under robes,” he ordered pushing Jiang Cheng out of his way as he poked and prodded at his patient.
Within record time, Jiang Cheng was back with one of his freshly washed under robes and helped the healer to put the clothes on their unconscious and uninvited patient/guest, taking extreme care to not touch the forehead ribbon. He knew how important that piece of ribbon was for the Lans.
“So?” Jiang Cheng asked the healer, wringing his hands in nervousness.
“His Qi seems to be stable and as you already mentioned, there’s no visible injuries. It appears that he’s in deep sleep. I suppose we should wait till tomorrow morning to see if he regains consciousness,” the healer replied.
“Healer Wang!” Jiang Cheng bellowed. “That,” he gritted out, pointing a slender finger at the sleeping figure, “is Zewujun. From Gusu Lan. If anything happens to him here, we’re screwed. We can’t afford to be careless with his life.
The healer cowered in fear. “I-I-I know, Jiang Gongzi,” he stammered. “But there really is nothing wrong with his body. I can guarantee that. We’ll just have to wait until he wakes up.”
Jiang Cheng pinched the bridge of his nose. He really should try to rein in his temper. After all he wasn’t a healer.
“How about you go and get some sleep, Jiang Gongzi?” the healer suggested without any eye contact.
Jiang Cheng was suddenly feeling the crushing weight of worry and tiredness on his shoulders. “No, I’ll stay,” he decided and borrowing a blanket, he moved to make himself comfortable on the floor beside the bed occupied by Lan Xi Chen.
Now that he had an up close visual of the peaceful face of the sleeping Lan, he couldn’t help but notice the changes on the face of the man that he hadn’t seen for three years. He looked thinner than before and slightly older too. Which shouldn’t really have been surprising considering the series of shocks he had received in regards to his sworn brother’s horrendous activities. Hell, Jiang Cheng himself was still recovering from it. But one thing hadn’t changed, and that was his delicate beauty. He still looked as handsome and dashing as ever. Jiang Cheng outlined the sleeping man’s face with his pointer finger and marveled at the soft skin. The wide forehead, eyes surrounded by soft crinkles, framed by long and thick lashes brushing against his cheek, the slender, delicate nose, the sharp prominent jawline and the pink luscious lips that he could almost imagine capturing in a bruising kiss-
Jing Cheng felt his entire body heat up at the sudden diversion his thoughts had taken and he pulled his hand away like he had been burned. As much as he hated to say this but maybe Wei Wu Xian was right. His lack of sexual life was finally getting to him. That’s just what it was. Sexual frustration. He tried to calm his racing heart and forced himself to focus on the important matters at hand.
Jiang Cheng wondered what the First Jade of Lan had been doing in Yunmeng. If he was visiting he should have sent a missive of his impending arrival and knowing the Lans and their stupid rules, Zewujun wasn’t the kind to appear on one’s doorstep without prior notice. Moreover, from what he had heard from his nephew, the man was supposed to be in seclusion, recovering from the betrayal of his sworn brother. So how did he appear in Yunmeng? And why? Why was he unconscious? Why was he travelling alone? Jiang Cheng had so many questions. But the only person that could answer them, was lying unconscious on the bed next to him. All Jiang Cheng could do was wait.
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Light slithered through the tiny opening of the window and Lan Xi Chen let out a soft groan, as he opened his heavy eyes. There was a dull thudding at the base of his skull and he stared at the unfamiliar ceiling, trying to recall where he was. He heard the sound of rustling robes on his right and before he could turn, a familiar, worried face appeared in his line of vision.
“Zewujun! Zewujun,” Jiang Cheng whispered, waving a hand in front of his face, worry lacing his words. “Are you alright? Can you hear me? Are you in pain?”
Lan Xi Chen stared in confusion at the sect leader bombarding him with questions. Jiang Wanyin? What was Jiang Wanyin doing here? And why did he look so worried? But he couldn’t deny that the raw concern in the Sect Leader’s eyes was making him feel all warm and giddy. Lan Xi Chen had always found the Jiang Sect Leader really good looking with his boyish face and angry young man persona. But now with increasing age and his ‘I just woke up face’ he looked ruggedly handsome. His hair was a mess. His robe was a mess. There were dark bags under his eyes. But why did he look like a beautiful mess? Wait a minute. Why was Lan Xi Chen thinking about what a beautiful mess the Jiang Sect Leader was? What in the world was happening? He looked around the room and frowned.
“Where am I?” he rasped, his throat painfully dry.
“You’re in Lotus Pier,” Jiang Cheng replied, as calmly as he could and helped Lan Xi Chen lean against the bed.
“Lotus Pier?!” Lan Xi Chen screeched loudly and then winced at the sound of his own voice. ‘Screaming is prohibited,’ his mind supplied for him. He took a deep, calming breath and with a much controlled voice, tried again. “How did I get here?”
“I don’t know, Zewujun. I found you lying drenched and unconscious on my pier.” Jiang Cheng was getting worried. Did the First Jade of Lan suffer a memory loss? He should probably send for the healer.
“That is not possible,” Lan Xi Chen replied with wide eyes and lips pressed into a thin line, absolutely hating the fact that Jiang Cheng was calling him Zewujun. No, seriously. What is happening to him. Why is his heart fluttering like a butterfly? And did he say drenched? He looked down and found himself in soft purple under robes and the scent of Lotuses clinging to him. A scent that was very similar to the one wafting from the Jiang Sect Leader.
“Well, Zewujun, I can assure you I am not lying,” Jiang Cheng said blankly.
“No, you don’t understand!” Lan Xi Chen sputtered, throwing all calmness and serenity out of the window. It wasn’t like he was in Gusu! “I was on a nighthunt in Moling! There’s no way I could have reached Lotus Pier-,”
“Moling?” Jiang Cheng asked, skeptically. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, I am. How-,” Lan Xi Chen was interrupted by the sudden appearance of the Healer.
“Oh, Zewujun. You’re awake,” the healer chimed as he hurriedly moved to his patient, to check on his meridians. “Everything seems perfectly alright. But I would really like to know, Zewujun, what exactly happened last night?”
“I was in Moling,” Lan Xi Chen repeated firmly. “Wang Ji and A-Xian suggested me to go on a night hunt, hoping that it would make me feel better. And I didn’t want them to worry about me, so I agreed to go as long as I could go alone. I didn’t want them fawning all over me.”
Jiang Cheng ignored the pang in his heart at the familiar way the Lan Sect Leader referred to his brother. He honestly did not know if he was jealous because his brother had a good relationship with Xi Chen or if it was because Xi Chen had referred to him so intimately.
“So without a plan in mind, I decided to walk through the streets of Gusu and Caiyi and eventually found myself in Moling. But sadly for me, there were no hauntings happening around. So I wandered through the streets, tried different delicacies, spent an evening at the tea house which let me add, was very interesting, helped an old woman and when it was nearing bed time, I booked myself a room at the local inn and went to sleep,” he finished.
Jiang Cheng stared in apprehension at the older Lan’s story. “That’s it? Nothing else happened?”
“No.”
“Well,” the healer began. “That is unusual. But I guess, we should focus on the fact that you are alright.”
“Yes, thank you, healer,” Lan Xi Chen smiled sincerely and turned to Jiang Cheng. “You too, Sect Leader Jiang. I don’t really know how I ended up here but I have to apologize for turning up unannounced. And thank you for everything that you’ve done for me,” he said with a soft smile.
Jiang Cheng couldn’t take his eyes off those lips that had curled into a mesmerizing smile. He had always liked the Older Lan’s smiles. They were always like a calming sea to his raging storm. “It’s-uh- no problem,” Jiang Chang stuttered with a blush, when he realized that he had been gawking for a pretty long time.
Lan Xi Chen looked away, his lips tilted into a smirk and tried to control the heat spreading through his neck. He had seen Jiang Cheng turn red in fury on various occasions. But this time the reason for his blush seemed to be different. Embarrassment? Shyness? Improper thoughts? He did not know.
“I’ll go and get your clothes,” Jiang Cheng said and ran out of the room, like his tail was on fire.
The minute Jiang Cheng stepped out of the room, a blood curdling scream tore through Xi Chen’s mouth and he bent forward, clutching his chest. Jiang Cheng was by his side in a milli second.
“Zewujun! What’s wrong? Healer Wang, what the fuck are you doing standing there?! Do something!” He yelled at the stupefied healer.
“I’m fine. I’m fine,” Xi Chen whispered, rubbing at his chest, where just a few seconds back, it had felt like somebody was tearing through his heart. “It’s not hurting now.”
Jiang Cheng was alarmed. The scream that he had just heard had chilled him to the bones. The scream was filled with so much pain and agony and knowing the Lan’s and their strength, Lan Xi Chen must have really been in uncontrollable pain.
The healer checked his pulse and placed a trembling hand on his patient’s heart and sent a wave of energy. He could feel Lan Xi Chen’s energy, strong and stable, thrumming within him.
“There,” the healer faltered, “is-um- uh- nothing wrong with him,” and closed his eyes, half expecting to feel the angry sect leader’s Zidian on his skin. But nothing hit him. He cracked one eye open and saw the Jiang Sect Leader’s cold, unflinching face and twiddled with his thumbs in fear. “There really is nothing wrong with him!”
Jiang Cheng pressed the bridge of his nose and sighed tiredly. He could already feel the incoming headache.
“Jiang Wanyin,” Xi Chen said calmly. “I am fine. I have basic healing knowledge and I can assure you, that I am feeling completely fine. The doctor is not wrong in his diagnosis.”
“Fine, I am going to take your word for it,” he replied with a glare and turned to walk out of the room.
No sooner had he stepped out the room, Lan Xi Chen doubled over and let out another painful scream, scaring the living daylights out of Jiang Cheng and the healer.
Jiang Cheng reappeared by his side and said just three words. “What. The. Fuck.”
“You shouldn’t swear,” Xi Chen replied, panting.
“Seriously?! That’s your priority right now?” Jiang Cheng shouted.
“Jiang Wanyin. I am the patient. Don’t shout at me,” Lan Xi Chen pouted. He was pouting now? What’s next? He was going to grow horns? Looks like Wei Wu Xian was rubbing off on him.
The healer was turning an alarming shade of white. “I swear to God, Jiang Gongzi! Zewujun is perfectly alright! I don’t know what is happening! Please don’t fire me!”
At this point, even Lan Xi Chen was confused.
Just when Jiang Cheng was about to unleash hell on his healer, the healer exclaimed, “Wait a minute! I think I know what is happening!” He turned to Lan Xi Chen and said, “I am going to have to do a small experiment and I apologize in advance if it causes you discomfort.”
“By all means,” Xi Chen agreed, with a swing of his arm.
“Jiang Gongzi, you should leave,” the healer stated, fidgeting on his feet.
Jiang Cheng narrowed his eyes at the healer but did as asked. Again, the second he stepped out of the door, Lan Xi Chen yelled out in pain.
“I really don’t know what is wrong with him,” the healer began
Jiang Cheng really wanted to strangle himself with Zidian. Or the healer. Seriously, what kind of doctor says ‘I don’t know’ to a patient. If the doctor was Nie Huiasang, then maybe yes.
Before Jiang Cheng could do something drastic, the healer added, “Whatever is happening to him, is happening only when you leave the room, Jiang Gongzi.”
“You can’t give a diagnosis, so you’re blaming me now?” Jiang Cheng gritted out. Good Lord, his patience was running out.
“Hold on, let me show you,” the healer said and walked out of the room. “You’re not feeling anything, are you, Zewujun?” he asked from the doorway.
“No,” Lan Xi Chen replied, the gears in his mind already in motion.
The healer walked back into the room and indicated Jiang Cheng to leave. When Lan Xi Chen doubled over in pain again, the healer smiled, proud of his accomplishment.
“So you’re telling me, that every time I separate from him, he’ll be in pain?” Jiang Cheng asked again, still dubious.
“It’s likely that he has been unknowingly cursed to stay within ten feet of someone. I don’t know how you became that someone,” he answered and turned to Lan Xi Chen, who was lost in his thoughts. “Something must have happened last night, Zewujun. You are missing something important in your story. I have done my job as a healer. Figuring out this mystery is your job now. I have to go check on Old Lady Yi. Please excuse me,” he said and left the room after giving them both a deep bow.
Jiang Cheng stared at the first Jade of Lan, wondering what he was supposed to do now. Lan Xi Chen, himself, did not look any better than him.
“Soooo,” Jiang Cheng drawled.
“I don’t know, Jiang Wanyin,” Xi Chen replied awkwardly. “But until we find a solution for this, I will have to impose on you. Apologies.”
Jiang Cheng’s heart did not skip a beat. It did not skip a beat at all. “I am going to send a letter to Wei Wu Xian and inform him about our situation.”
Lan Xi Chen gave him a knowing smile. He wasn’t an idiot. He knew what the Jiang Sect Leader was doing. He was killing two birds with one stone.
Looks like it was finally time for Jiang Cheng to send a letter to his adoptive brother.