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Entertaining the Wen clan was never fun, even for the wealthy Jin sect, so the less-than-blessed Jiang sect was having a time. More specifically, Jiang Cheng and Jiang Yanli were having a time keeping Wei Wuxian from punching Wen Chao for the third time that evening; at least they weren’t Zongzhu , who was stuck with Wen-zongzhu for the evening.
“He just insulted Shijie’s cooking!” Wei Wuxian yelled, struggling in the hold Jiang Cheng had on his arms.
“Like it’s my fault she has the cooking skills of a toddler. I’ve seen dishwater more appetizing than the food she tried to serve us!” Wen Chao sneered, flinching behind Wen Zhuliu when Wei Wuxian lurched forward, thankfully still held in Jiang Cheng’s grip. “It was, like, eighty percent water, right, gege ?”
Wen Chao looked at his brother, Wen Xu, who was staring out at the water, watching the local fishermen with a bored look and clearly trying to pretend he was anywhere else. He started when Wen Chao poked him, scowling as he swatted Wen Chao’s arm away.
“Of course the soup was mainly water—that’s how you make soup, Chaochao. And it was actually very delicious, you just hate lotus roots, remember?” Wen Xu said, sounding far more patient than anyone ever did when dealing with Wen Chao. “Now, apologize to Jiang-guniang for being a picky eater and stop trying to fight her martial sibling and brother.”
With that, he returned to ignoring them and staring at the fishermen, muttering something about different kinds of humidity as he adjusted his robe collar again.
Wen Chao scowled at him and then looked back at Jiang Yanli, who had been outwardly dealing with the complaints with just as much patience as Wen Xu showed but her fists were clenched. “I’m sorry you don’t take your guest's preferences into consideration when serving them food.”
“You little shit!” Wei Wuxian spat, ignoring Jiang Yanli’s reprimand about his language and launching himself at Wen Chao. He was quick enough that he managed to slip from Jiang Cheng’s hold; Wen Chao noticed this and, in a move that shocked Wen Zhuliu, managed to dodge Wei Wuian.
Unfortunately, Wen Xu was still standing beside his brother and still pretending to be somewhere else, so he didn’t see Wei Wuxian coming. Wen Xu let out a small yelp when Wei Wuxian’s hands made contact with his back, his arms flailing as he tried to regain his balance before pitching forward rather ungracefully into the water below.
There was a moment of silence before Wei Wuxian started laughing loudly. “Wow, this is great Wen-gongzi ? Isn’t he the head disciple as well? I would hate to see the rest of your cultivators if your best can’t even dodge correctly.”
“How dare you put your filthy hands on a Wen!” Wen Chao growled, fear forgotten as he launched himself at Wei Wuxian to defend his brother, knocking them both onto the pier and beginning to tussle. Both Jiang Yanli and Wen Zhuliu moved to break them, Jiang Yanli scolding Wei Wuxian for fighting. Jiang Cheng stood frozen, staring down at where Wen Xu had vanished beneath the water, his eyes widening as the bubbles surfacing were slowly getting less and less frequent.
Everyone from Yunmeng knew how to swim before they knew how to walk, a requirement with how many lakes and rivers ran through the territory, but the likelihood of someone from a landlocked place like Qishan being able to was unlikely. And the pier they were walking out was very far from shore, the water out here dark and murky with how deep it was. Deep and dark, with lotus stalks and lakeweed growing from that bottom that could easily tangle and panic even the most confident Yunmeng swimmer.
"He’s not coming back up!" Jiang Cheng shouted in alarm, catching the attention of the others. He didn’t wait for them to react, tossing his sword onto the pier and diving into the cool waters.
It only took a moment for him to resurface, Wen Xu clinging to his shoulders tightly and almost pulling them under again. Jiang Cheng managed to get them to the edge of the pier and gripped the robes that were draped along the sides for poor souls that fell in to grab onto until someone helped them up.
Wen Zhuliu was by them in an instant, helping Wen Xu onto the pier and giving his back a firm pat as he coughed and sputtered. Jiang Cheng was a bit surprised when he was helped up as well but grateful.
"You!" Jiang Cheng growls as he knelt beside Wen Xu, pointing at a startled Wei Wuxian. "Go get a blanket and a healer, fast! And Jiejie, please go inform A-die that one of our guests fell into the lake."
"I don't need a healer," Wen Xu managed to say between coughs and Jiang Cheng scoffed at him.
"Yes, you do. Ever heard of delayed drowning?” Wen Xu gave him a blank look. “Exactly. They're going to check to make sure that won't happen. And trust me, it’s not fun when it does."
Wen Xu starts to reply but just ends up coughing, turning his head to vomit up a small bit of lake water. Jiang Cheng gave him a sympathetic glance and firmly patted his back, circulating his Qi as best he could to help clear Wen Xu’s lungs. He would have to wait until the healers got there for real medical attention but the healers had insisted learning this little bit of first aid would help greatly.
…
Wen Ruohan was not pleased to learn his son almost drowned because someone decided to push him into the water. Nor was he pleased about all the Jiang disciples he could see gawking at his son, who was sitting on the pier and wrapped in a blanket with several healers fussing over him. The Jiang disciples scrambled away when Wen Ruohan approached, almost falling into the water themselves in their haste to leave. Jiang Fengmian was also getting on his nerves, trailing behind Wen Ruohan and making excuses while his daughter remained silent, leading Wen Ruohan to his son as he had demanded. Good, at least one Jiang knew how to shut up.
"What happened?" Wen Ruohan demanded when they finally got to his son and took stock of the scene before him.
Wen Xu’s robes had been removed, leaving him in only a pair of pants, and his hair was dripping down his face, making him resemble a wet rat. Wen Chao was being dramatic beside Wen Xu, clinging to his brother’s shoulders and wailing about how he had almost died. Wen Zhuliu was standing there, dryer than he should be, looking very tired and resigned. The only other person as wet as his son was the Jiang heir, his robes still dripping water onto the docks and with his own blanket around his shoulders; it was clear who had pulled his son out and Wen Zhuliu was going to have to be punished for this.
"It was an accident!" The Jiang head disciple—Jiang Fengmian’s bastard, if the rumors were true—blurted out, earning an annoyed look from the Jiang heir and a quick order to shut up. The disciple didn't listen, mouth moving a mile a minute. "I was just playing and was trying to push Wen Chao but he dodged and I accidentally pushed Wen Xu instead."
"So, instead of pushing my eldest who can't swim into the water, you were going to push my youngest who also cannot swim. Am I correct in hearing that?" Wen Ruohan questioned, making the female Jiang flinch.
The disciple quickly shut his mouth while the heir just closed his eyes, looking pained.
"Now, Wen- zongzhu, perhaps you're blowing this out of proportion—" Jiang Fengmian quickly snapped his mouth shut when Wen Ruohan’s head snapped to him.
"Are you trying to be funny? My heir almost died because your disciple thought it would be funny to push people off of piers. If you were a more competent sect leader, I would have thought this was some genuine assassination attempt and not a reflection of how poorly you train your disciples. Or is this one just an exceptionally stupid one?"
Jiang Fengmian flinched at that. "A-ying didn't mean any harm."
"And yet he still caused it. You're lucky I don't have him held under the water as well as punishment. And you!" Wen Ruohan turned to Wen Zhuliu, who remained unflinching in the face of Wen Ruohan’s wrath. "Why didn't you jump in after him? My son could have died due to your inaction.”
"I will accept whatever punishment Zongzhu sees fit." Wen Zhuliu said, bowing.
"He was distracted pulling that demon off of me!" Wen Chao said, still clinging to Wen Xu despite the healers now trying to physically pry him off, and pointing at the head disciple. "You should have him drowned for his crimes!"
"Nobody is getting drowned!" Jiang Fengmian said and Wen Ruohan snorted.
"You're right, death is to light of a punishment.” He glanced at Wen Zhuliu, nodding his head towards the disciple. “Have him waterboard for his crime of attempted murder."
Wen Zhuliu moved to grab the boy, who looked rightly terrified, only for the Jiang heir to stand between them.
"Wait!" The boy said and Wen Zhuliu looked at Wen Ruohan, who tilted his head in acknowledgement. The boy hesitated for a moment, clearly surprised he was listened to, before bowing. "I-I saved Wen Xu's life, so you owe me a debt, right? So I'm using it to have my shixiong pardoned for his mistake. Which it was, a mistake that won’t happen again."
Wen Ruohan could object, say that the debt was technically owed to Wen Xu and not him, but the fact that anyone in his family owed someone a debt wasn't ideal either. Plus, the boy had even been polite enough to bow when begging for his possible sibling’s life. Wen Ruohan could appreciate someone who had manners.
"What a kind son you have, Fengmian, to throw away a favor from me so easily." Wen Ruohan said after a tense moment and he heard Jiang Fengmian breathe a sigh of relief.
He glances at where the healers are still fussing over his son, Wen Chao now pouting on the pier and no longer clinging. Wen Ruohan couldn’t help but roll his eyes. Really, his son was fine, even if he smelled like lake water.
…
The healers at Lotus Pier either took their job too seriously or felt no fear—maybe both, Wen Ruohan suspected—and had insisted that Wen Xu be kept for the next 24 hours for observation. Something about delayed drowning being worse in cultivators if not monitored, their golden cores overreacting at a threat it couldn’t find and potentially leading to a qi deviation or worse, and the symptoms easily overlooked unless you know what to look for to start with.
Wen Ruohan took to staying in Wen Xu's room, meditating while the healers came to check on his son every hour. Wen Chao was in a guest room, guarded by Wen Zhuliu, and he hadn't seen so much of a hair of Jiang Fengmian or his idiot head disciple since the tense dinner he had attended.
That was for the best as he might still punish the child if he ever caught him alone or burn the sect down if he had to listen to Jiang Fengmian's continued excuses.
His children were getting swimming lessons as soon as they got back to Qishan, a shameful oversight on his part not to have them already know how to.
"He's really cute, isn't he?" Wen Xu asked wistfully when a healer left, making Wen Ruohan crack his eye open to look at his son. He was still lying down but his eyes were open, staring at the ceiling.
"The healer? I suppose if you're into backwater hicks." Wen Ruohan said, making Wen Xu snort.
"No, not him! Jiang Cheng, the heir!" Wen Xu said, a smile making its way onto his face. "It was adorable how he saved his shixiong like that, such a kind and caring child. And so cute."
"I think you hit your head when you fell.” Wen Ruohan said bluntly. “I’ll request the healer look when he comes again."
Wen Xu scoffed, sitting up to give Wen Ruohan a glare. Only in private would his children be anything but respectful to him. "I want to kiss him. I think he's the only one I'll ever love."
"Are you a Lan now?"
Wen Xu glared harder. "I'm serious! He's so beautiful, did you see his face?"
Yes, he had seen the boy’s face and he heavily favored his mother in looks: pretty in a sharp way, with cheekbones that would be deadly one day and almond-shaped eyes.
Wen Xu stared intently at Wen Ruohan. "How do you get a boy to like you, Fuqin ?"
"You order him to."
Wen Xu made a frustrated sound, throwing his arms up. "That's not going to work! I want him to like me because he likes me not because I made him!"
"Then find a way to relate to him," Wen Ruohan said, a smirk making its way onto his face. "He clearly likes swimming, maybe you two can bond over the fact that you can’t."
Wen Xu huffed and flopped back down, back to staring at the ceiling.
Silence filled the air, Wen Xu pouting and Wen Ruohan thinking.
After a moment, Wen Ruohan spoke. "You need to learn how to swim. I can arrange for the boy to teach you. You can use that to grow closer to him."
Wen Xu smiled. "Thank you, Fuqin. You're my favorite fuqin ."
"I'm your only fuqin." Wen Ruohan said blandly. "Now get to sleep, it's late."
Wen Xu settled back down to sleep at that, pulling the blanket around himself and looking far too pleased. Well, if he didn't manage to naturally get the Jiang boy to like him, Wen Ruohan could always give the boy some incentive to do so.