Chapter Text
Lan Xichen proofreads his proposal one final time. It was his first official proposal. One which would be read and presented by his uncle in front of all the sect leaders and important officials of the cultivation world during the discussion conference later that day. Not only had he tossed out dozens of ideas before settling on the final one but he’d also written and rewritten the document multiple times, his house littered with previous iterations of the paper that currently laid before him.
It was perfect.
Now all he had to do was get ready to join his uncle. Seeing how monumental of a day it was, Lan Xichen changed into his nicest robes which were not only the whitest ones he possessed, but they also had a thin almost invisible silver strings embroidered into it creating a pretty sparkle when it was hit by the sunlight.
He’d many times received compliments on his looks when wearing these robes. Because despite others not knowing quite what was different about him from usual, many would comment that his looks were greatly improved and that he was downright shining.
Vanity might be against Gusu’s rules, but dressing up for important occasions was not. Allowing Zewu-jun to look his best on days such as this. Wanting to calm his nerves by double checking that everything was in order Lan Xichen walked over to get a final glance in his bedroom mirror, as it was the only mirror he owned, before he was ready to leave.
Walking back into his office he found his uncle had already arrived. Unaware that Lan Xichen had returned he stood by the desk, his fingers gently grazing the proposal as though he was afraid it would turn into dust at the slightest touch.
“Greetings uncle, I’m ready to leave now.” Lan Xichen spoke to announce his arrival.
Turning around slowly Lan Qiren looked at him as though it was a completely new man standing before him. This wasn’t his little nephew anymore, Lan Huan was all grown up and was even writing his own proposals now. “Mn, you sure are ready.” Lan Qiren spoke as he blinked away the wetness that had began to form in the corner of his eyes
Lan Xichen chuckled. “Why are you getting so emotional for? It’s just a minor adjustment to a basic transportation system, and not even a very inventive one at that.”
“I know, but it’s my Huan’s idea.” Lan Qiren responded, wiping away a tear before it had the chance to fall.
Shaking his head at his uncle’s sudden emotional state Lan Xichen took a couple steps forward and took his uncle’s hands in his own, lightly squeezing them in support. “If you get like this for something so insignificant what are we going to do when I become sect leader and make genuine changes to the cultivation world? Are you going to sit around crying all the time? Do I need to invent you some super-absorbent handkerchiefs next, or should we start documenting you as the third waterfall of Gusu?” he teased.
Lan Qiren sent him a warning look not to take it any further. “How can you call today insignificant? This is such a big day and as your uncle I’m very proud of you”
“I know. Thank you uncle, without you I would’ve never gotten this far.” Lan Huan spoke, turning the old man’s cheeks a light shade of pink.
“No need to flatter this old man. You were always a bright kid. I am certain you would’ve gone far even without my guidance.” Lan Qiren spoke, swatting at the air to get rid of his nephew’s compliments and responsibility for the younger Lan’s accomplishments. Lan Qiren tried to hide his bashfulness by grabbing his nephew’s proposal and turning towards the door. “It’s time to go, let’s not be late on such an important day.” He huffed, despite there still being plenty of time to spare.
“Alright master Qiren, please lead the way.” Lan Xichen spoke, as he fell in line after his uncle like he’d done many times before, only this time was different. His stomach filled with anticipation and worry. Because even if he knew that what he’d written was a perfectly good and presented well, it could still be shot down and ridiculed for no other reason than because someone was having a bad day or as retribution for Lan Qiren having turned down a previous proposal of theirs.
The only thing left to do was for Lan Xichen to cross his fingers and follow the older Lan to the conference room where everyone would soon gather. As uncle Qiren went off to speak with some of their sect elders Lan Xichen quickly spotted the straight-backed Lan standing all on his own at the edge of the crowd.
“Greetings Xiongzhang” Lan Wangji spoke, sparing him a short yet respectful glance before his eyes once more focused on a point of interest off in the distance. Following Lan Wangji’s gaze Lan Huan unsurprisingly found none other than young master Wei who looked to be in the middle of getting scolded by his younger brother.
“Are you trying to call him over by staring at him long enough to burn a hole in his back?” Lan Xichen asked, having exchanged his usually polite smile with a lightly smug grin reserved only for his brother in times like these. Times when it was so painfully obvious that he wanted something, yet he did absolutely nothing to get it. If Lan Wangji really wanted to talk to young master Wei before the conference all he had to do was walk over there. With how talkative the other young man was Lan Wangji would probably not even need to start the conversation himself, just being in close proximity to the Wei would be enough.
“I don’t want to talk to him, and It’s not been that long. He only just arrived” Wangji responded, not even bothering to pretend that he wasn’t staring. There was no point in denying what his elder brother already knew.
But the Wei arriving late would explain why he was getting his ear chewed off by his annoyed brother. Young master Jiang wasn’t usually one to show his annoyance during important meetings. It wasn’t good for gaining the approval of those more powerful than him, but today he had apparently made an exception prior to the discussion conference’s start to ensure his brother stayed in line for once.
“You’re nervous. Don’t be.” Lan Wangji said in a monotone voice, after noticing the older Lan fiddling with Liebing by running his finger’s over her hills and valleys. Even without his eyes leaving his target he could still read his brother as well as his brother could read him. And beyond just reading Lan Wangji’s body language Lan Huan could thankfully decipher his speech as well. What, to an outsider, would’ve sounded like a cold dismissal of the older Lan’s feelings was meant to reassure him, to tell him that Lan Zhan had no doubts that he would do just fine during the conference and that there was no need to worry.
“Thank you Wangji, I’ll try not to” Lan Xichen responded before hearing his younger brother let out a sudden gasp under his breath.
Looking up Lan Xichen found two purple clad cultivators on their way over, one dragging the other along by the wrist and using his other hand to wave at them. Brimming with joy he wore a large bright smile as he hurriedly walked in their direction.
“Seems like he didn’t need to be stared at for as long as you thought… or perhaps he wanted to stare at you as well?” Lan Xichen teased, causing Lan Zhan to clench and unclench his fist in an emotion that was somewhere in-between agitation and panic.
“Greetings Lan Zhan! Zewu-jun.” Wei Wuxian spoke, being the only one alive who would dare to make their greeting to the Lan clan’s sect heir their second thought. But seeing as young master Wei’s first thought was reserved for Lan Wangji, the Lan’s older brother was more than happy to let it slide.
“Greetings to you too young master Jiang and young master Wei” Zewu-jun replied seeing as his brother was not going to greet the pair verbally. Lan Wangji, who had previously been unable to not look at the Wei, was now unable to not not look at the Wei. His gaze still firmly stuck in the distance where the two cultivators had previously stood.
But to Lan Zhan’s relief, or perhaps disappointment, Wei Wuxian hadn’t walked over to talk to him, but rather turned to the older Lan. “I heard from Huaisang that you will have a proposal presented at today’s conference Zewu-jun. That’s really cool, do you think I could have a copy of it?”
Lan Xichen hadn’t even thought of making copies of it seeing as it wasn’t a very difficult concept to grasp, nor was it particularly interesting, but here young master Wei was showing an interest in his proposition.
“I don’t have any available at the moment, but if young master Wei is truly interested I’ll have one written up for you by tomorrow” Lan Xichen offered, steeling himself for being rejected. Young master Wei wasn’t the kind of person who would usually take interest in sect matters and so Lan Xichen would hold no false belief of their interaction being anything but feigned interest.
“Oh, in that case could you write one for my brother too?” Wei Ying asked excitedly, still interested in receiving a copy. ”Jiang Cheng, you want Zewu-jun’s proposal too don’t you?” He spoke with a smirk as he bumped shoulders with his brother who looked equally as upset and unhappy with the current interaction as Lan Wangji did.
Instinctively being against anything that came out of his brother’s mouth young master Jiang let out a loud “No!... I mean, if Zewu-jun would write me a copy too it would be a great honor, but if it’s a bother it really isn’t necessary… for either of us” He added in a much more mellow tone as he glared at Wei Wuxian for bothering their senior.
From his constant change in tone, it was clear that the Jiang was working very hard to try and keep his emotions in check. Anger and annoyance aimed at his brother was mixed with the shame of not being able to hide said emotions in the presence of a well-respected cultivator. It was cute how hard he was trying. And the accompanying rosy cheeks gave him a very alluring look. If there had been any bachelorettes around he’d surely be engaged by the end of the day.
But thankfully young master Jiang was unable to see just how seductive his struggles were or else it would become a big problem. Not only would it be highly useful for picking up a mate, but also a weapon to use during future discussion conferences.
If sect heir Jiang could, with just a bashful face, convince everyone to agree with his proposals that would be highly dangerous. So before the Jiang learnt how to manage the talent he possessed Lan Huan would need to come up with a counter for the sake of protecting his sect. Whether he needed to practice self-control or participate in some other emotional-strength training he would need to stay strong for his people.
“A-Xian, A-Cheng!” a female voice called out.
“Sounds like it’s time to go” Young master Wei spoke in an uncharacteristically excited tone. As if the next couple of hours wouldn’t be filled with a lot of sitting still and listening to their elders speaking, two of the things he despised most.
Lan Wangji could also feel something going on. His hand clenching in preparation for what was to come. With Wei Wuxian behaving better than normal he believed this was the calm before the storm. Certain that the Wei would try something.
“Wangji-di. Young master Wei has been blessed with the ability of being able to be entertained by any little thing, there’s no telling what has gotten him happy. Let’s not make any rash judgements.” Lan Xichen reminded his brother, who had already made plenty of judgements in regards to the Wei’s current mood.
But before the younger Jade twin could reply their uncle had returned to lead them inside the conference hall.