Chapter Text
The sun had only just risen and most of the city was still quiet with the morning rush hour not yet started, but Lan Wangji had already been up for hours and in the center of a crime scene with his brother.
The two of them were pristine figures in white and pale blues as workers in the darker blue uniforms of the Cultivation Authority moved around them in a dingy alley that held the messy remains of what was once a middle-aged man who looked like he was on his way to or from a jog in the nearby park. The alley was a popular shortcut for those living in the nearby area to get to the park. It was, in fact, the pale-looking jogger talking to a CA agent at the mouth of the alley who had found the man.
“There’s no response,” Lan Wangji said. He had been trying Inquiry for several minutes now, sat down on a spot that had been cleared of any evidence, his guqin held in his lap. He had first tried to contact the spirit of the deceased but had heard nothing. He then tried to reach any other spirits that may be in the area to ask what they may have seen but none answered. It was strange. Except for those areas where Cleansing had been recently played, sacred areas of temples, and those where a large number of cultivators lived and frequently worked at keeping away spirits and resentful energy, there were always spirits willing to talk.
An alley such as this should have at least one spirit willing to answer his questions. And with his cultivation level and skill with the guqin, spirits from even further afield should be trying to answer him. But even when he opened himself up to a larger range of spirits at a greater distance, he could pick up only the faintest of whispers at the periphery. It was likely those spirits were out of range and wouldn’t know anything. Otherwise, everything and everyone was silent. It was very strange.
It was also what had happened at the last five murders they’d been called out for. Murders were a sad feature in a city this large but rarely could the local authorities not handle it. But for each one of these murders, the police had taken a look at the scene and called in the Cultivation Authority, a department of the government that was not widely known but was staffed completely by agents who were also cultivators. They were in charge of regulating fellow cultivators and the supernatural elements of the world. It was not a secret that the supernatural existed and most people knew this on some level, but at the same time, it seemed as if the ordinary citizens among them either willfully chose to ignore the world of cultivators or were somehow blissfully ignorant of it.
Lan Xichen nodded at him and then looked at the body. “I was hoping that this one would be different, somehow. The first victim managed to share a few thoughts with you before it faded, but we’ve gotten nothing since.”
“Mn,” Lan Wangji said. He didn’t doubt his skills but it was frustrating for a technique that so often worked and worked well to fail him now.
“I don’t blame you, Wangji. Everyone knows you’re the best guqin player, especially for Inquiry. But there’s also been very little other evidence and it’s clear that this person’s escalating,” Lan Xichen said.
Lan Wangji had to agree. The first murder had been shocking with the clearly ritualistic way the woman had been murdered and how the spirit had faded but there had been some clues left at the scene. But since that first murder, the clues had become less useful and the spirits less talkative.
It also hadn’t even been a full week between this murder and the previous one. Lan Wangji feared there would be another one within days. They couldn’t even properly warn the citizens on how to defend themselves because as far as they could tell, there was very little pattern in the time, place, or people that were chosen.
“Come on. We’ll leave the rest of the processing to the team and head back to the HQ to start organizing canvassing teams, and get the tech division to find any video footage that might lead us to something,” Lan Xichen said.
So far no amount of canvassing neighbours and locals for information or checking footage from security cameras had led anywhere but they could get lucky and their murderer could get sloppy this time.
Lan Wangji moved a hand over his guqin, dismissing it back into the qiankun bag. He then stood and brushed his hands over his clothes to settle them back into place and hoped that the spells that kept them clean of filth held.
“We’ll stop by a cafe on the way in to work and grab tea, coffee, and pastries.”
Lan Wangji tilted his head curiously at that stop. They had both been up for a while now and he was sure his brother would have not only eaten but done his morning meditations and had tea before he was called to the scene.
“We’ll need the tea after we assign all the tasks and break the news to everyone. And the coffee and treats are for Nie Mingjue. I have an idea that I’ll need him to co-sign and you know how he is in the morning,” Lan Xichen explained.
“Mn. Not everyone appreciates mornings like us,” Lan Wangji agreed. Though some were certainly worse than others. Nie Mingjue could at least get up in the morning and as long as he had enough coffee before people started dropping trouble in front of him, he was typically amiable enough. At least to him, he was. Though Lan Wangji was a quiet presence and not likely to annoy those who were not yet fully awake.
“Yes. Though not many go to bed as early as we try to when not on cases either,” Lan Xichen added.
“You said you had an idea,” Lan Wangji said, directing his brother back to the topic. Lan Xichen and Nie Mingjue both co-led the CA, something that had been suggested by Nie Mingjue when they had both been up for the promotion to director. It allowed them to lead their sects, and still help maintain peace in the cultivator world. It was also an extra fail-safe in keeping the CA from succumbing to corruption as it had in the past.
Sect leaders had less to do these days than back in the ancient times of cultivators as far as Lan Wangji could tell. Sects were mostly integrated into regular society and had to abide by the numerous rules and laws that all citizens in the city and country did. With schools dedicated to cultivators and elders hired on by the sect to train those in higher cultivation and fighting skills, the sect leader mostly just maintained peace, budgets, and intersect alliances.
His brother and Nie Mingjue both used him and Nie Huaisang to help with those and various other duties so that their time could be better spent on the most important issues of both the sect and the CA.
Normally, Nie Mingjue and Lan Xichen agreed about nearly all things on how the CA should be run, and those they didn’t initially agree on, they did after a short discussion weighing the pros and cons. For his brother to think a small bribe of coffee and pastries may be required, this was clearly one of those latter cases. It set Lan Wangji on edge wondering what his brother might suggest.
“Wei Wuxian is technically still under contract with us. And he has taken on a few cases for us before…” Lan Xichen said.
His brother knew the topic of Wei Wuxian was a sensitive one for him. Lan Xichen also knew how talented Wei Wuxian was, and despite the exorbitant fees that he demanded, that Wei Wuxian was worth it. Lan Wangji had always appreciated the faith that his brother had in Wei Wuxian even if it was because of Lan Wangji's faith in Wei Wuxian.
Still, Wei Wuxian had turned down twice as many requests as he had taken and if the sects knew they were hiring him on again, they would make noise.
“Is that wise?” Lan Wangji asked. He wanted Wei Wuxian to have chances to prove himself and win back his reputation and trust of the cultivation community, but he also did not want to risk him being exposed to danger and more ridicule.
“We don’t have much choice. If the spirits refuse to answer you, the only person I can think they might talk to is Wei Wuxian. With no other clues, I fear this is the only way forward.”
Lan Wangji sadly couldn’t refute that. Hadn’t he just been thinking how there would likely be another murder within the week if they could not make more progress on the case? “How will you convince him to say yes?”
“I was hoping you would ask him. You know this case well and Wei Wuxian knows you. If you ask him, I’m confident he’ll agree,” Lan Xichen said.
His brother was fully aware, even though Lan Wangji wished he wasn’t, of how Lan Wangji felt about Wei Wuxian and the odd friendship they had developed when they were at school together. It was true that Lan Wangji probably had a better chance than most at getting Wei Wuxian to meet him, but he wasn’t sure their familiarity would make him agree.
“I’ll do my best.” If Lan Xichen could convince Nie Mingjue on the soundness of this plan, then Lan Wangji would do what he could to make Wei Wuxian accept the contract. If nothing else, it would be a chance to check up on him in person and not just through the weekly reports that were submitted by those assigned to keep an eye over the community where Wei Wuxian lived.
“I know you will. Come on, we’ll talk more when we get to the office. For now, help me choose what you think Da-ge will like,” Lan Xichen said. He held the door open for Lan Wangji to enter a cafe that thankfully opened early for the morning jogger crowd.
Lan Wangji gave his brother a nod of thanks and headed in, eyes already focused on the display case of treats. He would make sure that Nie Mingjue was suitably won over and would agree to Lan Xichen’s plan.