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They say that art is one of the greatest expressions of love.
Xie Lian always thought it was a sweet phrase, but had never truly understood the lengths some people would go through to prove it to be true.
He knew that his beloved husband, the fearsome calamity Crimson Rain Sought Flower, took that phrase to the extreme. And while he was flattered, he thought that his cave had been the bulk of his obsessions.
Little did Xie Lian know that as he was exploring Paradise Manor he would come across a collection of sketch books.
“Oh.” Xie Lian breathed as he opened the first one.
Contrary to what some might expect, the first picture was actually of a random ghost child. Xie Lian smiled, tenderly brushing a finger over a bulging cheek that his talented husband had managed to capture perfectly.
The next was of a flower of some kind. Xie Lian couldn’t say what it was, but Hua Cheng had managed to capture all of the creases in its petals perfectly.
The entire book was a collection of mundane pictures. While most would find it boring, Xie Lian found it absolutely endearing.
So he promptly went to find his husband.
He found him in his now repaired Weapon’s Room. He was polishing a knife, and Xie Lian paused to appreciate the movement of his husband’s rippling muscles.
He loved Hua Cheng in all states of dress, but his favorite was definitely the sleeveless tops.
“Gege, welcome.” He snapped out of his oogling with a blush, and offered his husband a warm smile.
“Hello San Lang. I was looking for a room to convert into the meditation room we discussed, and I came across a group of sketch books.” He explained. He approached his husband, smile growing tender as Hua Cheng put down the knife and wrapped his arms around his waist. He leaned up, pressing a warm kiss to his husband’s mouth in greeting. “You are so very talented.” He added. Hua Cheng rolled his eyes, but Xie Lian caught the glint of pride in them.
“They were something I did in my spare time.” He shrugged. “You can throw them all out. I’m not attached to any of them.”
“Absolutely not.” Xie Lian said, tone oddly firm. It caused Hua Cheng’s eyes to widen before a pleased smirk crossed his face. Sensing that he accidentally set his husband’s nightly pleasures off early, Xie Lian blushed and pulled back, putting a couple feet of space between them.
A mid-day romp would be fine any other day, but not when Xie Lian was seeking a place to help both of their cultivation methods.
“I adore your art, San Lang. Please allow me to keep them?” He asked. The heat in Hua Cheng’s gaze simmered down, and his expression grew fond. He reached out and captured one of Xie Lian’s hands, pressing a tender kiss to the back of it.
“What’s mine is yours, gege. I have several sketch books scattered around the entire city, not just here. I can’t even remember where they all have gone.” He admitted. Xie Lian grinned, the idea of tracking them all down causing him to grow giddy.
“It will be like a treasure hunt!” He said with glee. Hua Cheng chuckled and his grin grew affectionate.
“Sure, gege, whatever you’d like.”
Xie Lian leaned in and kissed him again before practically racing out of the room to get to the other sketch books.
Two of the other six were full of other random objects and people from his husband’s travels. The other four, as expected, were full of him. Xie Lian had had many portraits of him done over his lifetime. But there was just something different about the way his beloved saw him.
He could almost see the beloved God that he had been over the years.
As he flipped through the final pages of the last sketch book, an idea popped into Xie Lian’s head. Their first anniversary was next month, and he just thought of the perfect gift.
As Xie Lian worked on his present for his husband, Hua Cheng had seemed to take his excitement at finding sketch books to heart. For the next month, when Xie Lian was wandering the streets of Ghost City, he would happen upon at least three sketch books a week. Some of them looked too new to have been “left” there, as his husband continued to claim, but Xie Lian was too excited to bring to light his husband’s antics. Instead he would eagerly rush home, or to Hua Cheng’s side if they were out together, and show him his latest finding.
“Oh, I can’t believe I forgot it there.” Hua Cheng would always say in some way or another. Xie Lian would simply laugh and kiss him, so very happy to call this wonderful man his.
Even with this game underway, and his regular duties as head of Ghost City, Hua Cheng still found time to create a romantic evening for them. To Xie Lian’s delight, it took place at Puqi Shrine.
“Oh wow.” He gasped in awe as Hua Cheng removed his hand from his eyes, showing a picnic in one of his favorite meadows under a clear sky. “San Lang, it’s wonderful.” He turned, leaning up to wrap his arms around his husband’s neck.
“Anything for gege.” Hua Cheng murmured, happily capture his lips in a sweet kiss. Before it could grow heated, Xie Lian pulled back and tugged his husband down for their meal.
They caught up on one another’s day, just as they did every night. Xie Lian had spent the day in the Heavens, getting ahead of some work as he anticipated not wanting to leave his bed at all tomorrow. It was a nice change of pace for him, and he was more than happy to relive it all over again as he told his husband about it.
Finally, as Hua Cheng put away dinner, Xie Lian made his move. He carefully pulled out the picture he had been hiding, passing it to his husband.
“Happy anniversary, husband.” Xie Lian said with a smile. Hua Cheng took the picture, and his eyes widened in surprise. He looked up, and Xie Lian was touched to see his eyes filling with tears. He smiled, leaning over to tenderly cup his face. “I’ve had many pictures of me done in my life, my love, but none have been as wonderful as the ones you have done. I’m no artist, not like you, but I hope that you like this picture of us.” He said. Hua Cheng nodded, reaching up with his free hand to press Xie Lian’s against his face.
The picture had been a sketch of them in front of Puqi Shrine (though Xie Lian didn’t really draw the building in depth. The only indication that’s where they were was the sign on the door). Xie Lian had used one of Hua Cheng’s portraits of him smiling and laughing as reference for himself, and he was holding Hua Cheng’s hand. His husband, on the other hand, was looking at him with what Xie Lian considered his typical look of adoration.
“I’ll treasure this always, gege. It’s perfect.” Hua Cheng said, voice a little raspy from his emotions. Xie Lian’s expression softened and he leaned in to share a watery kiss with his beloved.
He knew just how much this gift meant to Hua Cheng. His husband’s life hadn’t been the kindest, and he was sure that he had only received at the most 4 or 5 genuine gifts. As he watched the way Hua Cheng positively glowed as he gushed over the portrait, Xie Lian’s chest was full of warm affection. He leaned against his husband’s side, nodding along as he began to ramble about it.
“Gege, thank you again.” Hua Cheng murmured that night. Xie Lian tilted his head back, smiling as his husband pressed a kiss to his cheek.
“You’re very welcome, beloved.”