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Chapter Text

Mu Qing sighed, burying his face closer against Feng Xin’s chest, desperately chasing the comfortable sleepiness he had been experiencing just a few minutes prior. It was too early to get up, but for whatever reason, he was wide awake.

After another minute of that, he opened his eyes, staring up at Feng Xin’s face. His eyes were pressed lightly closed, his mouth every so slightly open as he slept.

A small smile pulled at his lips as he reached out, laying his hand against the side of his face, gently rubbing his thumb across his cheek. He didn’t think he’d ever fully admit it out loud, but he loved when he would come spend the night like this. He loved waking up to his strong arms wrapped around his waist, to his serene face just inches away. Why had he even let that not happen for the first 800 years they had known each other? He hadn’t had any idea what he had been missing out on.

He leaned forward, pressing gentle lips against his forehead.

Feng Xin shifted in his sleep. “Mu Qing…” he mumbled, reaching out and pulling his head down to rest on his shoulder.

He didn’t complain, just buried his face back against the crook of his neck, relishing in the closeness.

After a few minutes though, he began to get bored. He was awake, so he wanted something to do.

There was only one real thing he could think of doing that would allow him to stay wrapped up in Feng Xin’s arms - going through prayers.

Normally, he delegated the initial overviews to his junior officials. They would go through them and determine if they were to be taken seriously or not, and, if they were, which ones needed his direct attention versus which ones they could take care of themselves. When he had extra time though, he would usually go through some himself. He imagined that it made them happy to have slightly less work to do when he did it too.

Doing it like this, he couldn’t necessarily delegate things out, but anything that he could take care of without physically going out and doing it, he could finish.

He spent a little while going through everything, dismissing prayers that he could do nothing about. Some people prayed to him for the oddest of things sometimes (seriously, what was he supposed to do about the girl wanting her crush to talk to her or the slightly worse fishing conditions in a rural town this year - he was a martial god.)

After a while though, one specific prayer caught his attention, standing out from the rest by the sound of the voice of a small child.

Umm, my mommy said that if you ask a god for something that they might give it to you, so I wanted to ask for help finding her and daddy. Oh, and also for help keeping the dogs away. They’re scary.

He frowned when he heard that. A small child whose parents were missing. It made something tug at his chest. He wanted to go help them immediately. And really, what was stopping him? He couldn’t sleep, he might as well go do something to help.

He checked where the prayer had come from - a small temple of his in the town of Yiling - then got to work extracting himself out of bed without waking up Feng Xin.

He managed to get up, then lit a single candle to give himself some light, heading over to his wardrobe to change.

He was just pulling on his outer robe when there was a creaking sound from the bed. He turned just in time to see Feng Xin sit up, rubbing his eyes.

“Mu Qing? Where are you going?”

He turned his attention to the mirror beside his wardrobe, fixing his hair. “I have a prayer I want to go deal with.”

“Right now? It’s not even dawn.”

He shrugged. “I woke up and couldn’t fall back asleep, so I’m doing something.”

The bed creaked and he watched in the mirror as Feng Xin walked up behind him, not hesitating as he wrapped his arms around him, burying his face against his shoulder.

“Come back to bed with me.” His voice was still heavy with sleep and it made something jump in his stomach.

“I’m already ready to go.”

Feng Xin groaned, squeezing him tightly.

He held back the laughter that was building up in his throat, instead lightly smacking his arm. “Come on, let me go.”

“I don’t want to.”

“Go back to bed. I’ll be back in a little bit.”

Feng Xin lifted his head, staring at him for a few seconds before changing his grip, lifting him up off the ground, making Mu Qing let out a startled noise.

“Hey! Put me down!”

“No,” he said as he walked back to the bed, collapsing down onto it while keeping his grip locked around him.

He struggled against him. “Feng Xin, I swear if you don’t let me go… You’re not sleeping here anymore if you don’t.”

“You like it when I sleep here too much.”

“Yeah? Do you want to test that?”

Feng Xin let out a sigh, releasing his arms from around him.

Mu Qing quickly sat up, wiping at his clothes, getting out the imaginary wrinkles he had gotten in them.

He looked down to see Feng Xin staring up at him, looking at him with such a pathetic expression that it almost made Mu Qing feel bad. Almost.

He sighed, leaning forward, pressing a soft kiss against his forehead, tucking a strand of loose hair behind his ear. “I’ll be back in a little bit. You’ll be fine.”

Feng Xin let out a breath. “Fine. Just be safe, okay?”

He nodded. “Don’t worry.”

He stood, heading for the door. This would be easy. Just help this kid find his parents - or someone to take care of him - and then he’d be back, probably before most people were even awake yet.

He made his way out of his palace, going and descending into the mortal realm.

Once he got to Yiling, his first stop was the small temple the prayer had come from. He was always very particular about his temples, and this one was no exception, everything inside prim and proper.

It was entirely devoid of people though. That made sense, as it was so early in the morning, but it did make it harder to find the child who had prayed to him.

Not knowing what else to do, he exited the temple, beginning to walk through the city. Dawn was just beginning to break, the sounds of people beginning to wake up and start moving around as they started their day breaking through the quiet. He avoided all the areas beginning to be inundated with people, instead making his way to the areas where a child might hide - alleyways and deserted side streets.

Before too long, he heard something that made him perk up. A crashing sound followed by the deep and guttural noise of a growling dog. The child in the prayer had mentioned something about dogs, hadn’t they? This was very well a sign that he had found them.

He quickly made his way toward the sound, finding his way into a dead-end alleyway.

Two dogs were gathered around a small figure huddled against the wall at the end, growling as they stepped forward. The figure was, without a doubt, a child with greasy long black hair covering his face, almost unbelievably tiny as he curled in on himself, torn clothes covered in grime and dirt. He would bet this was the kid who had sent him the prayer.

Mu Qing strode forward, his gaze falling on the dogs, putting everything he had into making his animosity toward them known, anger curling in his chest at the thought of them attacking this poor child. As if they had sensed him coming toward them, the dogs turned. One look at him and one of them let out a pitiful whimper, tucking its tail between its legs.

Mu Qing ignored it, moving past it and toward the child. As soon as he had pushed past them, there was the sound of paws thumping across dirt as they turned and ran.

He paid it no mind, instead crouching down several feet away from the child. Now that he was closer, he could see that he was shaking, clutching something tightly to his chest with dirt covered hands.

Mu Qing held out his hand toward him as if he were a stray cat, keeping his voice as gentle as he could make it. “Hey, it's okay. They're gone now.”

The boy slowly lifted his head, tear stains visible on his cheeks from where they had run through the grime. He peeked behind him as if trying to determine whether or not he was telling the truth about the dogs before turning back to him, his expression suddenly widening in awe.

“You chased them off?”

“I did.”

He sat fully up, a bright smile forming on his face. “Wow. They never leave no matter what. You're super cool, gege.”

Something warm pulled at his chest. It had been a long time since anyone had called him that - especially with such reverence in their voice. Maybe not since he had taken care of the neighborhood children in Xianle all those centuries ago.

He didn't bother to hide the small smile on his face as he reached out a little further, watching for any signs of tension as he laid his hand on his shoulder. He didn't seem upset at it though - quite the opposite actually - as he pushed himself forward until he wound up directly in front of him, barely managing to not fall over as he did so.

Mu Qing placed both hands on his shoulders, holding him steady as he spoke. “Do you know where your parents are?” He already knew the answer to that question, but he needed to suss out if the kid was actually an orphan or if his parents had just wandered somewhere and abandoned their child here.

The kid bit his lip before shaking his head. “Mommy and Daddy said to stay here and that they would be back soon. They said they were going on a… a…” He paused as if he couldn’t remember the word. “A Night Hunt!”

It wasn't looking good for this kid's parents then. If they had gone on a Night Hunt, that meant that they were cultivators. And if they weren't back yet, they might have bitten off more than they could chew on fighting a ghost or a monster.

“How long have they been gone?”

“Don't know,” the kid said. “A while.”

He was just going to work off of the assumption that they were dead then. That meant that he needed to find out any information he could about this kid. Maybe he had relatives that would be willing to take him in.

“What's your name?”

The kid looked momentarily stumped by the question. “Wei… uhh… Ying.”

Mu Qing blinked. Did this kid not even know his own name? He wasn’t going to push him on it though.

“Okay, A-Ying, do you know any other people aside from your parents?”

He tilted his head. “I know you?”

He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. He had forgotten how cute little kids could be. He wanted to protect this one.

“You do, yeah.”

Wei Ying smiled brightly at him before something shy crossed over his face. He unclenched the hand that was still pressed up against his chest, presenting the contents to him. A squished and half-eaten steamed bun was in his palm, practically covered in dirt. “Umm, and thank you for helping me, gege, you can have this.”

He stared at the steamed bun for a few seconds. The idea of touching it was honestly a little bit disgusting to him, but still, this was the treasure he had been keeping safe from those dogs, and he was offering it to him.

He shook his head. “Why don't you hang on to it? I have plenty of food at home.”

He looked hesitant, but still carefully tucked it away, hiding it in the fabric of his clothes.

Mu Qing examined him for a few seconds. He was now going to go off of the assumption that he was an orphan and that he didn’t have any other adults in his life that he could go to. Of course, it wasn’t impossible that he might be able to find someone, but for now, this kid needed help.

First things first, he should get him something to eat that wasn’t a dirty old steamed bun.

“How about we go get something for breakfast?”

Wei Ying tilted his head. “Can we?”

Mu Qing nodded. “Of course. I bet that you’re hungry, aren’t you?”

He nodded slowly before breaking into a wide smile. “Okay, thank you, gege.”

A smile tugged at his lips as he reached out, grabbing him under his arms, and lifting him up as he stood. “You’re very welcome.”

Wei Ying didn’t hesitate to make himself comfortable in his arms, adjusting himself to lay his head against his shoulder, bringing a hand up to clutch at the fabric at the front of his robes. Holding him like this was most likely going to end up dirtying his clothes, but that problem fell to the back of his mind. This task was far more important.

Now that he was in his arms, he could tell just how light he was. He had initially assumed that, based on his size, the child was around five or six, but considering the ribs he could now feel clearly outlined, even through a layer of cloth, there was a very real possibility he was older, just small for his age. He really needed to eat.

He started heading back out of the alley before he realized a problem. Dawn had just barely broken - there was no way any restaurants would be open yet in this small town - not to mention, the child was dirty enough that he wasn’t confident anywhere would want him inside even if they were open. He needed a bath and a proper meal.

After considering it for a few seconds, he resolutely came up with a plan, heading back in the direction of the temple. “We’re going to go to my house, all right?”

While he didn’t think that he would get in trouble, per se bringing a mortal up to Heaven, it wasn’t something done very often and would definitely be frowned upon. Even so, he couldn’t bring himself entirely to care - not when this kid needed help. Besides, how many people would even notice his presence there?

Wei Ying nodded against him. “Okay.”

Mu Qing frowned. “If anyone tries to get you to go with them in the future, you have to tell them no, okay?”

“Why?”

“Because some people will do bad things to you.”

“But you’re good, aren’t you, gege?”

He laid a hand on his back. “Yes, so it’s fine to come with me, but you have to be careful with who you trust.”

“Okay, I will.”

“Good.”

They got back to the temple and still, no one was there. That was a good thing. He found a door, quickly drawing out an array that would take them back to Heaven - specifically into his Palace. Wei Ying watched him curiously the entire time, but didn’t speak. If his parents were cultivators, he had probably witnessed them drawing things like this before.

In just a few minutes, he was finished, activating the array and stepping through the doorway.

They arrived in a very familiar place - the kitchen of his palace. Most people still wouldn’t be awake yet, so there was none of the hustle and bustle he was used to - that was good though. Too much of that would most likely spook the poor child.

He was already looking around in bewilderment, eyes blown wide. “Gege, how did you do that? Are you magic?”

He suppressed a laugh. “Something like that.” He brought him over to the small table in the corner, depositing him in a chair. “Stay here and I’ll make you something.”

Wei Ying nodded, still looking around at everything in obvious curiosity.

Mu Qing walked over to the stove, considering what to make, before pulling down a few ingredients to make congee. He didn’t know the last time he had eaten, so preparing him something that would be easy to digest would be imperative.

He got the rice started before working on chopping up a few vegetables. He would boil them to make them soft and easy to eat.

He was just finishing up cutting them when the door to the kitchen opened, a familiar voice speaking. “Mu Qing? You’re back? What are you doing?”

“Cooking,” he said, adding the chopped vegetables to the pot. He turned around to see Feng Xin standing in the doorway, looking at him in apparent confusion.

“Why are you…” his gaze swept over the room before landing on Wei Ying, his brow furrowing. “What’s with the kid?”

A wide smile crossed Wei Ying’s face. “I’m Wei Ying!” He said helpfully.

“He’s Wei Ying,” Mu Qing said, turning back to clean the knife he had been using.

Feng Xin kept speaking behind him. “Okay… but why is he here?”

“Gege’s making me food,” Wei Ying answered for him.

There was the sound of footsteps and then a chair scraping across the floor. “Is he now?”

“Mmhm. It smells really good. Gege’s really cool. He even scared the dogs away.”

Mu Qing turned back around to see Feng Xin, now seated across from Wei Ying, with a confused smile on his face. “He is pretty cool, yeah.”

Mu Qing walked over, sitting down beside Wei Ying, laying a protective hand on his shoulder.

Feng Xin furrowed his brow. “Is this the prayer you went out to answer?”

He leaned back in the chair, crossing his legs. “Yes.”

“Why did you bring him back here?”

He met his gaze levelly. “Is there a problem with that?”

“Well… no, I guess. I just don’t know why.”

Mu Qing shrugged. “He needed food and a bath, both of which I can provide for him here. That’s all.”

He still seemed slightly confused, but nodded anyway. “All right I guess. Is there anything I can help with?”

He forced back a smile. He loved that he was always willing to help, even if he didn’t quite know the full story. “Not really.”

Wei Ying took advantage of the slight lull in conversation that followed. “What’s your name? Do you live here too?”

When Feng Xin turned to look at Wei Ying, there was a slight smile on his lips. It was hard not to be drawn in by the child’s eagerness. “I’m Feng Xin. And no, I just spent the night last night.”

“Like a sleepover? Where do you live then?”

“Something like that. And not very far.”

He seemed to consider that before speaking again. “So you and gege are friends?”

“Well… not exactly...”

Wei Ying frowned at that. “Why aren’t you friends?”

Mu Qing sighed. Why had he said it like that?

Feng Xin looked at him. “We are friends, but… we’re more than that too.”

Despite himself, Mu Qing’s chest felt warm whenever he acknowledged the fact that he considered him a friend. He didn’t like talking about it though.

Wei Ying nodded, almost knowingly. “Oh, like best friends then.”

Mu Qing just wanted this conversation to be over. He didn’t exactly want to explain the concept of two men being together to this kid right now. “Yes, like best friends.”

Feng Xin frowned, opening his mouth to say something, but Mu Qing glared at him, effectively shutting him up.

He stood. “I’m going to go check on the food.”

He walked back over to the stove, sighing to himself as Feng Xin got up and followed him, standing right behind him as he checked on the meal.

“So what exactly is going on?” Feng Xin asked, keeping his voice quiet.

Mu Qing answered back, matching his volume. “I got a prayer from a child asking for help, so I went to answer it. As far as I can tell, he’s an orphan.”

“Does he not have any other family he can go to?”

“Not that he told me, but I’m going to look into it more.”

Feng Xin nodded before crossing his arms. “Is there a reason you brought him back here though?”

“Was I just supposed to leave him?”

“Well, no, but I don’t think most people would take too kindly to having him here.”

“Then that’s their problem. I’m not leaving a child to fend for themselves when I have the full capability to help them.”

Feng Xin’s gaze softened. “Yeah… I get it. I’m here to help if you need it though.”

He nodded. He had to admit that it felt nice that he was worrying about him. That he was concerned with what others might think of him - something that he was usually very keyed into, but in this situation, couldn’t bring himself to care about. It was nice to have someone like that.

By then, the congee was done cooking. “Can you get me a bowl then?”

Feng Xin nodded, going to where the bowls were and getting one down for him while he stirred the food. When he got the bowl, he filled it before bringing it over to the table where Wei Ying was still sitting, watching them.

He sat down next to him, placing the bowl down between them. He hesitated before giving him the spoon though.

Not only was the food extremely hot, but he didn’t want him to eat too fast and risk throwing up if he hadn’t eaten for a while, so instead, he scooped up a spoonful, blowing on it to cool it down a bit before holding it out to him.

Wei Ying looked at the spoon then up at him. “I know how to eat by myself.”

“I know that you do, but it’s hot and I don’t want you to burn yourself.”

He seemed to consider that for a moment before leaning forward and taking the bite of food. Instantly, his face lit up. “It’s really good!” His mouth was still full.

“I’m glad to hear that, but it’s impolite to speak with your mouth full, okay?”

He quickly closed his mouth, chewing and swallowing. “Sorry.”

Mu Qing got another spoonful of the congee, blowing on it. “It’s all right. It’s important to know proper manners though.”

Wei Ying nodded as he was fed the next spoonful.

They continued on like that until the bowl was empty.

“Was that enough? Do you want any more?” Mu Qing asked, wiping a grain of rice gently off the edge of Wei Ying’s mouth with his thumb.

Wei Ying hesitated, looking at the empty bowl before looking back at him, shaking his head.

Mu Qing frowned. Was he too scared to ask for any more? It seemed from his reaction that he was still hungry, but didn’t want to ask.

Really, he understood that reaction though. It reminded him of when he’d been a child, his mother working hard to put enough food on the table, oftentimes not eating enough herself to make sure that he was provided for. Once he had realized that, he had given her similar reactions, not wanting to be a burden or take too much.

Before he could say anything though, Feng Xin, who had been sitting across from them the whole time, small smile on his face, stood up, grabbing the bowl. “It’s okay. There’s plenty of food. You can have it.”

Mu Qing’s chest was pleasantly warm at the action.

“But… don’t you need to eat too?”

“We’ll eat later. Like I said, there’s plenty,” Feng Xin said.

“I can really have more?”

Mu Qing laid his hand on his shoulder, giving him a comforting smile. “Of course you can. While you’re here, you can have as much as you want. You just have to ask.”

“Then… can I have more, please?”

Feng Xin was already on his way back from the stove, where he had gotten him another serving over their conversation. He placed it down on the table. “Here.”

Wei Ying smiled brightly at them. “Thank you!”

Mu Qing hummed as he picked the spoon back up. He was glad to be able to do something to help this child.

Chapter Text

By the time Wei Ying was finished eating, the palace was starting to come alive again, people finally waking up and starting to go about their day.

A few of his junior officials had come into the kitchen, much to Wei Ying’s delight as he happily greeted anyone he came across. No one had quite seemed to know what to do with the child suddenly in the palace, but no one questioned him on it either, just continuing to go about doing what they needed to do.

Now though, the first pressing task complete, it was time for the next.

“All right. It’s time to get you a bath now.” Mu Qing wiped the corner of Wei Ying’s mouth.

He nodded emphatically. “Okay, but I want Xin-gege to come too.”

Mu Qing looked over at Feng Xin, his face heating up. It wasn’t that he was surprised by the request - Wei Ying had been talking ecstatically at Feng Xin while he had been eating his second serving of food, to the point where it had actually become quite the chore to get him to stop talking and actually eat, but still the thought of taking a bath with him was…

While yes, they had been together for quite some time now, the physical side of their relationship hadn’t gone past kissing and cuddling. And really, as it stood, it could never. If he were to give up his chastity, that would also mean giving up his spiritual energy, and, without that, his godhood was entirely null.

It was something he had been extremely clear about before allowing their relationship to get to this point, so it was something both of them had agreed upon, but, as a result of that, there was still a level of privacy between them - one that would shrink in this scenario. He wasn’t sure he was ready to handle something like that.

Feng Xin didn’t seem bothered by it at all though, briefly meeting his gaze before turning to Wei Ying. “Yeah, I can come.”

Was he just oblivious to his plight or did he just not care? Was that not even something he considered about this scenario? Should he be offended by that? Did he not even consider his body as something to look at? Even if he wasn’t allowed to, considering their relationship, shouldn’t he want to?

He sighed. Knowing him, it was probably just him being oblivious. He might realize eventually, but not for a little while.

Wei Ying let out an excited sounding noise, scrambling to get out of his chair. At least someone was having fun with this.

He practically ran to the door, looking at them like a lost puppy begging for a treat. “Where?”

Mu Qing stood, smiling as he walked over to him, picking him up. “I’ll take you.

Wei Ying nodded, clutching his fingers into the fabric of his robes.

Feng Xin joined them, and then they were off down the hallway in the direction of the bath.

They quickly reached the side of the palace that consisted of his private rooms. His junior officials knew better than to be over there, so it was just the three of them.

Wei Ying looked around curiously as they walked. “Hey, gege, are you rich?”

He blinked. How did he answer that? It wasn’t that he was rich, per se - it was that he was a god and that came with nice things. Before he could answer though, Feng Xin was talking, leaning over to Wei Ying, smiling.

“Oh yes, the richest person I know.”

Mu Qing rolled his eyes, smacking him on the shoulder. “Quit that.” It wasn’t like he was embarrassed - he had worked hard to get to where he was, but he didn’t like the teasing.

Feng Xin laughed, but Wei Ying frowned. “You shouldn’t be mean to your friends, gege.”

Feng Xin smiled at him. “Exactly, you should be nicer to me.”

“I think I’m plenty nice to you.”

“Only sometimes.”

By that point, they had made it to the bathroom, heading inside. It was a relatively large room for a private residence. The bathtub - big enough to fit 2 or 3 people - was inset into the floor, warm water steaming within. To the side, there was a place to wash up before going into the bath itself. This was the area he carried Wei Ying to.

He set him gently down onto the floor as Wei Ying looked around the room with unabashed curiosity.

He lightly pulled at his clothes. “Do you need help or can you get them off by yourself.”

That got his attention immediately as he started tugging off his clothes. They were so raggedy at that point that it was almost a wonder they weren’t falling apart. “I can do it!”

He let him do it, taking each article of clothing after and neatly folding it in a pile off to the side. There might be something that could be salvaged from all of that, and, if they were clothes his parents had gotten for him, there was a non-zero chance he would still want them.

When he was completely undressed, Wei Ying looked at him, tilting his head as if confused. He could see now just how small and skinny he was, his ribs clear and visible beneath his skin. In contrast to that, however, his stomach was full and protruding - evidence of the large meal he had just eaten. That was good. If he kept eating like that for a few more weeks, he might start gaining enough weight to be healthy again. He couldn’t wait to see that.

He paused. He wasn’t going to see that. He was only going to have him there for a day or two at most. Any more than that would be excessive. Even still, a large part of him wanted to be able to see him grow to become healthier and healthier.

He was pulled out of his thoughts by Wei Ying speaking. “That’s no good, gege. You can’t wear clothes if you’re gonna take a bath.”

At that, he cast an almost involuntary look over at Feng Xin, who was watching their exchange, his face heating up, before turning his attention back to Wei Ying. “Yes… you’re right.”

Wei Ying tugged at his robe. “So take them off.” He looked over toward Feng Xin, pointing at him. “You too, Xin-gege.”

Feng Xin let out a small laugh. “Right away.”

Mu Qing sighed, fully at the mercy of the child in front of him, standing from where he had been knelt down in front of Wei Ying, starting the process of taking off his robes, choosing to ignore the sounds behind him of Feng Xin doing the same. The mere idea of him seeing him naked was absolutely mortifying.

He took a deep breath. This was just a bath. A bath with a child present, at that. It wasn’t inappropriate in the slightest. But, even still, the thought of being entirely unclothed in the presence of the person he was dating made his gut twist with insecurity. He didn’t like that.

Before he knew it, he was removing his inner robes, folding them. He removed his hairpiece, letting his long hair fall entirely loose around his shoulders, placing it on top of the clothes, leaving everything in a neat pile.

Once he was done, Wei Ying looked at him, nodding approvingly.

Despite the embarrassment coursing through him, he smiled. He looked so pleased with himself.

“All right, let’s get you clean first, okay?”

Wei Ying nodded. “Okay!”

Mu Qing knelt down, pointedly not looking back in the direction of Feng Xin. As far as he was concerned in this moment, it was just the two of them in this room. He couldn’t think about the reality of the situation.

He started with his hair, wetting it before washing it, making sure to get all of the dirt and oil out, taking his time as he massaged his fingertips against his scalp. He wanted this child to feel clean again.

Wei Ying leaned back, resting his back against his knees, eyes closed, seemingly lost in the experience. How long had it been since someone had done this? When had been the last time someone had touched him gently to clean him? Or even tried to give him any comfort at all?

Mu Qing placed his hand over Wei Ying’s forehead, shielding his eyes as he poured water over his hair to rinse it. It was adequately clean now, so he moved on to his body, scrubbing the dirt from his skin.

When he got to his upper arm though, he stopped. He hadn’t noticed it before, first hidden under his clothes and then disguised by the grime, but there was a ragged scar cutting across the skin. It spanned the entire width of his arm, covering it in what were clearly teeth marks.

He gingerly ran his fingers over the marks as if touching them would hurt him still.

Wei Ying looked over at where he was touching. “Dogs are scary.”

A flash of anger sparked through his chest as he remembered the dogs who had seemed on the verge of attacking him before. He should have done more to them than just scare them off.

He kept his voice as level as possible. “They’re not going to be able to hurt you anymore, okay?”

Instantly, a wide smile formed on his face as he looked up at him. “Okay.”

His smile was contagious. He turned his attention back to washing him, making sure he was fully clean.

When he was finished, he patted his shoulder. “All right. You can get in the bath now.”

Wei Ying turned to him, frowning. “But then who’ll wash your hair, gege?”

“I can wash it my-” He was cut off by a hand on his shoulder.

“I’ll do it, so you can go.” Feng Xin said.

He had nearly forgotten that he was there, successfully keeping him out of mind until that very moment.

Wei Ying nodded. “Okay.” He headed in the direction of the water.

“I can wash it myself. I don’t need help,” Mu Qing said, keeping a careful eye on the child as he experimentally stuck his foot into the tub.

There was movement out of the corner of his eye as Feng Xin knelt down beside him. “I know that you don’t need it, but I still want to.”

He crossed his arms over his chest. As embarrassing as this whole situation was, it did sound kind of nice. He didn’t say anything as Feng Xin ran his fingers through the ends of his hair.

“Can I?”

His face was hot. “Get on with it if you’re going to do it.”

He let out a soft laugh. “All right.”

His heart was pounding as Feng Xin began washing his hair, first wetting it before beginning to clean it, rubbing his fingertips lightly against his scalp.

He couldn’t help the soft sigh that fell from his mouth at the sensation. It was nice. He leaned back against him, ignoring the feeling of his bare chest touching him, instead opting on dividing his attention between the fingers on his scalp and keeping an eye on the child now splashing water in the bathtub.

“When was the last time someone did this for you?” Feng Xin asked.

He hummed. “My mother. When I was a child.”

“Really? Not once since then?”

“I don’t normally go around taking baths with people.”

“Have you ever?”

“Again, not since I was a child.”

He was quiet for a few seconds, his fingers faltering. “Then does that mean that I’m the first person to see you-”

Mu Qing cut him off by turning his head quickly toward him, not liking where this was going. “What do you think?!”

There was nothing but affection in his eyes as he looked at him. It made Mu Qing’s chest extremely warm and he turned away quickly, not wanting him to see the flush on his cheeks.

Feng Xin just hummed to himself as he continued washing his hair.

When he was finished, Mu Qing insisted on washing his body himself before immediately going to join Wei Ying in the bath, not wanting to deal with any more of that. It was far too embarrassing.

As soon as he stepped into the water, Wei Ying was clambering over to him. “Gege! Look what I can do!”

He began swimming from one side of the tub to the other, splashing some water, but actually quite adeptly for a child.

Mu Qing sat down, twisting his hair up so it wouldn’t get into the water, smile pulling at his lips. “That’s very good, but come sit. The bath is a place to relax.”

Wei Ying swam over to him, not hesitating as he positioned himself directly beside him, practically forcing himself under his arm.

He let him, draping his arm over his shoulder, squeezing him close. He couldn’t remember the last time he had been so unapologetically relied on like this.

After a few minutes of quietly sitting there, they were joined by Feng Xin. Mu Qing refused to look in his direction until he was safely in the water.

He settled down beside him and Mu Qing leaned his head so that it was resting on his shoulder. If his head was on him, that meant that he couldn’t easily look at him.

Feng Xin’s hand found his in the water, taking it, calloused skin rubbing against his palm as he began to softly play with his fingers.

He closed his eyes. This was nice. Quiet. Almost domestic in its feeling.

Why hadn’t he ever allowed something like this to happen before? If this was the result, he might be able to ignore all of the embarrassing parts.

He wasn’t sure how long they stayed like that before Feng Xin shifted, throwing him out of the delicate daze he had found himself in.

“We should probably get out soon.” Feng Xin’s voice was quiet, speaking right beside his ear.

He groaned, lifting his head up.

“I think the kid’s asleep,” he added.

Mu Qing looked over to Wei Ying. His eyes were closed, face slack, mouth slightly open as he breathed. It made sense that he was tired. He had been awake at least since dawn, and, there was a good chance it was much before that. He also probably hadn’t been getting many good nights of rest living out on the streets. A stomach full of food and a warm bath had most likely been enough to knock him out.

He didn’t want to disturb his rest, so he reached out, bundling him up in his arms before lifting him out of the bath. He made a soft noise, but didn’t wake.

He got out of the bath, Feng Xin following him. He kept a few towels in the room, so he grabbed one, wrapping Wei Ying in it before gently setting him down, drying off himself before finding his clothes, putting them back on. He was aware of Feng Xin doing the same, but he still refused to look at him until he was fully clothed again.

The clothes Wei Ying had been wearing were dirty and in tatters, so there was no way they were going back on.

He picked them up before turning to Feng Xin - he was fully dressed now, the only indication he hadn’t been before being the loose hair that fell around his shoulders. He looked good like that.

Mu Qing pressed the clothes into his arms. “Carry those.”

He looked at them, furrowing his brow. “What are you going to do with them?”

“I’m not going to make him wear them again, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

The look of relief on Feng Xin’s face told him that he had, in fact, thought that he was going to make him wear them again.

He rolled his eyes. “If his parents were the ones who got those for him, I’m not going to let them be thrown away. Besides,” he muttered. “They’re going to be at least close to his measurements.” A plan was forming in his head as he walked back over to Wei Ying, still asleep, scooping him up into his arms, heading out of the bathroom, Feng Xin walking close behind.

He went in the direction of his bedroom, going inside. He needed some sleep now and he was going to get it where he knew he would be safe.

He walked over to his wardrobe, pulling out one of his sleep robes. It was a jade green, embroidered with flowers. It was soft in his hands, the silk almost falling through his fingers. He didn’t have anything child sized, so it would have to do for the time being.

He swiftly swapped the towel for the robe, wrapping him tightly in it. It was more akin to a blanket, but it would still be fine just for sleep.

He carried him over to the bed, pulling back the covers, gently depositing him in it, carefully tucking the blankets back up around him.

A piece of hair was falling against his forehead, so he reached out, pushing it back up with the rest of it.

He already looked significantly better. It would be hard for anyone looking at him to tell that he had just been living by himself on the streets just a few hours before. He couldn’t wait to get him properly dressed.

He turned around to find Feng Xin leaning against his dresser, watching him with a soft smile on his face.

“What?” Why was he looking at him like that?

“Nothing. I was just thinking that you would make a good father.”

Why did him saying that make his heart start racing in his chest?

“Well, I’ll never be one,” he said gruffly, walking over to the dresser as well, to where the clothes had been deposited.

Feng Xin hummed noncommittally, but Mu Qing ignored him, taking the clothes in hand as he headed back out of the room. Wei Ying was definitely going to be asleep for a while, so now was a good time to do this.

Feng Xin followed him as he walked to his sewing room. He had more than enough to buy whatever clothes he wanted now, but a lot of the time, he would rather make them himself. It was something simple that made him feel closer to his mother. Something that he could do to honor her and everything she had taught him. She would approve of this too - of making clothes for an orphaned child.

He spread the clothes out on the sewing table, getting a gauge on how big they were. There was a slight bulge in one of the pockets, so he carefully reached inside. It was mostly just old pieces of food, but at the very bottom, there was a piece of cloth. The fabric was silky - a stark contrast to the rest of the clothes.

Curiously, he pulled it out, revealing a long red ribbon. It was a little bit worse for wear, the edges fraying, but it was in remarkably good condition all things considered. Had his parents gifted this to him? That would explain the condition. It was probably a treasure to him. He hummed, setting it aside. He could definitely do something with that.

Mu Qing stepped away from the table, opening a drawer, looking through a few bolts of fabric before pulling out a black one. Black would be good for a child. It wouldn’t show dirt and would also look nice. He took it back with him over to his sewing table.

“What are you doing?” Feng Xin asked.

“Making clothes. What else?”

“For the kid?”

He rolled his eyes. “Yes, for the kid. He doesn’t have anything that he can wear.”

“You could just buy some.”

“I want to make them.”

Feng Xin was quiet for a few seconds as Mu Qing pulled out a pair of scissors.

“What exactly is your end goal with all of this?”

“With all of what?”

“You’re putting in a lot of effort here. Especially for a kid you’re not going to keep… Unless you want to keep him?”

He looked up quickly. He couldn’t keep a child - especially not a mortal child in Heaven. Even just the thought of what people would say about that made his stomach turn.

“I’m not keeping him. I’m going to find someone to take him in.”

Feng Xin frowned. “Are you sure about that. I can-”

He cut him off by pressing his finger to his temple, entering the communication array, specifically Ling Wen’s array. ”Ling Wen, I need all the information you can get me about a cultivator by the name of ‘Wei’. He should have a son somewhere between the ages of seven to ten.”

There was a sigh. ”That’s not a lot of information to go on, General.”

”That’s all I know, but it’s not extremely urgent.”

”Understood. I’ll get back to you.”

”Thank you.” He removed his finger from his head, exiting the array.

“I’m going find someone.”

Feng Xin took a deep breath, furrowing his brow as he looked at him, but Mu Qing ducked his head, focusing now on the task at hand. He didn’t need whatever nonsense he was going to start spewing about keeping a a child. That wasn’t an option.

“All right.”

Chapter Text

Mu Qing cut the thread, tying the stitch off securely, flipping the garment back around, looking over his work. It wasn’t the absolute best work he had ever done, but it wasn’t bad considering the time restraint he had been working with. A full outfit done in just a few hours. If he had had more time, he would have maybe added some embroidery or a few ornamental designs, but this would serve its purpose.

He had even sewed each piece with extra fabric in the hems, allowing for them to be let out as the child grew.

He had made the inner robes out of a light off-white cotton that would be easy to move around in without getting too hot. The outer robes were made from black silk, though he had added in some red fabric as an accent. He had chosen red for one simple reason - it matched the hair ribbon he had found.

He had done his best to fix it up so that it was as close to the original as possible. The frayed edges had meant that it was now slightly thinner than before, but that would be hard to notice. It was able to be worn. That was all that mattered.

Gathering up all the fabric into his arms, he left the sewing room, heading back toward his bedroom. As he reached the door, quiet voices came into earshot.

“And then we saw this big cat. It was like this.” Wei Ying was speaking quickly.

“Oh wow. That’s almost as big as you.” Feng Xin’s voice was filled with amusement.

Mu Qing leaned against the door, smiling to himself.

“Yeah! And it was orange. I didn’t know they had orange cats. Before, they were only black and gray and white. And it was really fluffy.” A giggle. “I petted it and I wanted to keep it, but Mommy said no.”

“Hmm. That’s a shame. I do like cats, but black ones are my favorite.”

As cute as this conversation was, he did have clothes to deliver. He opened the door, stepping inside his room.

Wei Ying was sitting up on the bed, green sleeping robe wrapped around him, leaning slightly against Feng Xin, who had an arm around his shoulder, wide smile on his face.

His chest was insanely warm as both of them looked toward the door.

“Gege! You’re back!”

He hummed. “I brought you something.”

Wei Ying quickly moved toward the edge of the bed, nearly sliding off due to the non-friction of the silk sleeping robe on the silk of his bedsheets, only saved by Feng Xin grabbing hold of his arm.

He seemed unbothered by it though, speaking quickly, “Really? What? I wanna see.”

He walked over to the bed, sitting down beside them, presenting him with the outfit. “I thought you could use some new clothes.”

Wei Ying reached out, almost in awe as he touched the silk of the outer robe. He glanced up at him. “Can I really have it?”

“Of course. I made them especially for you.”

His eyes widened. “You made them?”

“I did.”

He looked down, hesitating, biting his lip before turning back up to face him. “Can I wear them?”

Mu Qing nodded. “Do you need help getting them on?”

He stared at them for a few seconds. “Yes, please.” He clambered off the bed, looking at him expectantly.

Mu Qing laid the clothes out on the bed, kneeling down in front of him, dressing him with practiced ease.

“While you were gone, me and Xin-gege were talking a lot.”

Mu Qing looked up, briefly meeting Feng Xin’s gaze, who was watching them with a small smile. “Yeah? And did you have fun?”

“Mmhm! Xin-gege knows about a lot of things.”

“He does,” he agreed. It seemed as though he was really warming up to Feng Xin. That was a good thing to happen. It wasn’t like he was planning on being the only person this child ever relied on. In a few days, he wouldn’t be relying on him at all.

He swallowed hard, continuing to dress him.

When he was finished, he smoothed out the fabric over his shoulders. “There.”

It was a little bit big in a few areas, but considering that he would be growing, he didn’t see too much reason to fix those.

Wei Ying looked down at himself, grinning widely. “Thank you, gege! I like them a lot!”

A smile tugged at his lips, any remaining negative emotions melting away. “I’m glad. There is one more thing though.”

He tilted his head curiously. “What?”

Mu Qing reached back onto the bed, grabbing hold of the ribbon.

As soon as he saw it, Wei Ying’s eyes lit up, taking it from his grasp. “My ribbon!”

“I fixed it, so you can wear it again if you want.”

He made an excited noise. “Thank you!”

Mu Qing hummed. “Do you want me to put it in for you?”

He nodded.

“All right. Give me one second.” He stood, heading over to his wardrobe, taking a hairbrush off of it, before coming back.

“Get back on the bed,” he said. It would be easier to do his hair that way.

Wei Ying nodded, climbing back up, sitting so that his side was resting against Feng Xin’s leg.

Mu Qing sat down behind him. Something touched his leg so he looked over, Feng Xin’s foot tapping against his thigh.

He furrowed his brow, looking over at him, but he was only smiling at him, looking extremely happy in that moment.

Fighting back a smile, he instead shot him a look with the clear intention of stop. He complied, ceasing the tapping, instead just pressing it up against him.

He let out a quiet sigh, turning his attention back to Wei Ying, beginning to brush through his thick hair. There were a few knots in it, but he had worked through a lot of them earlier when he had washed it, so it wasn’t too horrible.

When he was finished brushing it, he gathered it up on the top of his head, tying it up in an easy ponytail.

He laid his hands on his shoulders. “All finished.”

Wei Ying let out a cheer, turning to him, practically launching himself into his lap as he wrapped his arms around his waist. “Thank you.”

Mu Qing hugged him back. “It was no trouble.” He liked the sensation of warmth forming inside his stomach at his affections.

After a few seconds, he looked up. Feng Xin was looking at them, an odd expression on his face. It was almost sad. Like he knew something that Mu Qing didn’t. He didn’t like that look.

His mind went back to what he had said earlier - about keeping the child. Was that what that was about? Did he really think it was a good idea for him to keep him?

He took a deep breath. He couldn’t. No matter how adorable he was, he wasn’t his to keep.

Pulling back from Wei Ying, he looked down at him, adjusting his clothes. He was just doing what he needed to do to help a child. That was all this was. Anyone would have done the same.

“All right, it’s probably time for another meal now, isn’t it?” Mu Qing wanted to get his thoughts away from what had just happened.

Wei Ying nodded, clambering off of him. “Yes, please.”

The three of them headed out of the room. Mu Qing grabbed hold of Wei Ying’s hand, leading him in the direction of the kitchen once again.

When they were about halfway there, Feng Xin reached over, taking Mu Qing’s other hand, squeezing it gently before settling them together.

He liked this.

- - -

It was starting to get late by the time they finished eating. Despite the few hours of sleep he had gotten earlier, Wei Ying was beginning to yawn.

“Are you ready to go to bed?” Mu Qing asked, across from him at the table.

Wei Ying hesitated, shaking his head no.

“Are you sure?”

He nodded quickly.

“Why don’t we go for a walk then?” Feng Xin suggested.

“Can we?” Wei Ying gripped the edge of the table, looking to Mu Qing for approval.

He was clearly exhausted, but wanted to stay up. A walk might be good to thoroughly tire him out though. He nodded.

Wei Ying let out an excited noise, pushing his chair back, running to the door.

Mu Qing and Feng Xin followed after him and they started heading in the direction of his palace’s courtyard. That would be substantial enough for this walk.

As soon as they got outside, Wei Ying started pulling at his hand in an attempt to get him to go faster, looking around eagerly at all the foliage lining the path.

“What’s this flower?” Wei Ying asked, pointing at a bush.

“A peony.” Mu Qing answered.

He hummed, going over to another one, beginning to rapid-fire ask him to identify each plant he came across. He knew children were naturally inquisitive, but Wei Ying seemed more curious than most, seemingly always needing to be talking and asking about things.

They reached a bridge stretching over a small koi pond. Wei Ying ran over to the railing, kneeling down, leaning against it, staring down at the water, watching the fish intently. He looked so much better now that he was fully clean and dressed in appropriate clothes. So much more like the happy child that he was.

Mu Qing and Feng Xin stood behind him, Feng Xin once more taking his hand.

“I’m glad that he’s looking better,” Feng Xin said.

Mu Qing nodded in agreement. “Me too.”

“He’s a good kid.”

“He is.”

In front of them, Wei Ying lifted his arm over his face, stifling a yawn. It seemed as though the walk had been a good idea.

“When do you think you’ll get more information on his family?”

Mu Qing shrugged. “I’m not sure, but it should be fairly soon.”

“And what are you going to do when you find out?”

He sighed. “Take him to people who can take care of him.”

“What if there aren’t any?”

He tugged his hand out of his grasp, crossing his arms over his chest. “Then I’ll find someone else. I’m not keeping him.”

Feng Xin just sighed, walking past him to where Wei Ying was, now leaning fully against the railing, actively nodding off. He picked him up, Wei Ying curling into his arms.

Mu Qing’s chest panged at the sight. He turned away. He was clearly upset at him. But why did he care so much? It wasn’t like it was his decision to make.

Feng Xin walked up beside him, not hesitating as he lifted Wei Ying up, pressing him into his arms. Mu Qing instinctively caught him, hugging him against his chest.

Wei Ying looked up at him, eyelids drooping. “I wanna stay awake.”

He couldn’t help the small smile that pulled at his lips. “You’re about to fall asleep.”

“No.” He laid his head onto his shoulder.

“It’s time for bed.” He pressed his hand against the back of his head, holding him against him.

“I’ll head home for tonight then,” Feng Xin said.

Mu Qing bit his lip. He didn’t really want him to go, but it wasn’t like it was that easy to ask him to stay.

“All right.”

Wei Ying made a discontented noise, looking over at Feng Xin. “But Xin-gege, I want you to stay.”

How was it so easy for him to just come out and say that?

Feng Xin gave him an uncertain look.

Mu Qing hesitated. “You can stay if you want. Since A-Ying wants you to.” He turned, heading back in the direction of his room. There was a small pause before the sound of footsteps following him.

When they got there, they continued on in silence as Mu Qing got to work getting Wei Ying ready for bed, taking his hair down and taking off his outer robe. He laid him in the bed, tucking him in, sitting down beside him, absently staring at his face, gently rubbing his thumb against the side of his cheek, as he drifted off to sleep.

After a few minutes, Feng Xin spoke. “I can go if you want.”

Mu Qing sighed, standing, not meeting his gaze. “Stay.” He walked over to his wardrobe, pulling out one of his sleep robes.

It was still quiet as he began to get ready for bed, but he didn’t leave, so there was at least that. He hated when things were awkward like this between them. It was so unbearable. In the past, while their disagreements had often led to fistfights, it was almost better. He would prefer that over whatever this was any day.

At least then, they’d fight and then things would basically reset to normal the next time they saw each other. With this, he had the inkling that if they parted, things would still be the same in the morning.

When he was finished getting ready, he got into bed, curling himself around Wei Ying, who turned toward him, pressing himself against him, burying his face against his chest. It was nice to be so explicitly wanted like this.

He wasn’t keeping him though.

He clenched his fingers into the blankets.

The bed moved as Feng Xin got into it. He closed his eyes, letting him get settled, refusing to look.

All of a sudden, Feng Xin’s hand touched lightly against his, asking permission to touch him.

Mu Qing took a deep breath before solidly grabbing hold of it, twining their fingers together, squeezing.

After a few seconds, Feng Xin spoke. “I’m sorry.”

“Huh?” He could count on one hand the number of times he had heard those words from him in all the centuries they had known each other.

He took a deep breath. “If you don’t want to do it, I shouldn’t be pushing you to.”

“Yeah, you shouldn’t.” This was weird.

He was quiet for a few seconds. “Listen, I don’t want things to be awkward between us.” He squeezed his hand. “This is the happiest I’ve been in a long fucking time and I don’t want to screw that up.”

Mu Qing bit his lip. Had Wei Ying been awake, he would have berated him for his language, but he had nothing to hide behind here.

“...Yeah, me too.”

He squeezed his eyes shut.

It was silent between them for the next few minutes, nothing but the sound of quiet breathing.

This was fine. This was so much better than what it had been a little while before. It was silent, but not awkward.

All of a sudden, Feng Xin shifted, moving closer until his arm was pressed around his shoulders, holding him, child sleeping soundly between them.

Mu Qing relaxed, wanting to show him that this was okay.

It had been fine before, but being closer like this was a lot better.

Neither of them spoke for a while until Feng Xin began talking. “Oh, right, you remember that we’re supposed to go visit His Highness tomorrow, right?”

Inwardly, he cursed. He had completely forgotten. They had made those plans last week, but with everything that was going on, it had slipped his mind. What was he supposed to do with Wei Ying during that time.

He considered it for a moment.

“He can come with us.”

- - -

When Mu Qing woke the next morning, his bed was completely empty.

He sat up, looking around the room with bleary eyes. While it wasn’t entirely abnormal for him to wake up alone, considering there had been two people in bed with him the night before, it was odd on this morning.

He got out of bed, intent on putting proper clothes on before beginning his investigation as to what was going on, but as he got to his dresser, he found a note on it in Feng Xin’s familiar handwriting. It sometimes gave him a headache to read his handwriting for too long - how he was satisfied with it being as messy as it was was beyond him.

He read it. It was short and to the point, explaining that Wei Ying had woken up early and that they had gone to Feng Xin’s palace as to not wake him up.

Knowing now where he needed to go, he got dressed and did his hair, heading out of his palace and just down the road to Feng Xin’s.

He walked inside with purpose. He was over there enough these days that the junior officials he came across didn’t even question his presence, just bowing to him in greeting before letting him go about his business.

Considering he had a child with him, there were only a few places in the palace that he would likely be, so he headed to the courtyard.

As he stepped outside, there was immediately the familiar thump of an arrow hitting a target. Feng Xin had an archery range built into one corner of the courtyard and he often found him there practicing.

He walked over until he was able to see Feng Xin kneeling down next to Wei Ying as he clutched a low-weight practice bow in his grip. He was moving his hands for him, adjusting his grasp until he seemed satisfied, presenting him with a blunt target arrow from a quiver he was holding, once again moving his hands, showing him how to nock it.

He continued to stick with him as they turned toward the target set up just a little ways away.

Mu Qing was close enough to hear as he spoke, his voice kind and patient.

“All right, bring your arm up and aim toward the target.” He helped move his arm, aligning it with the target in a way that would allow him to hit it. “Then, you’re just going to pull back the arrow and the string all the way.” He guided his hand, helping to hold it back. “And then, after just a moment, release it.” He held the bow steady for him as they released the string.

The arrow flew, thwacking straight into the center of the target.

Wei Ying immediately let out an excited noise. “Xin-gege! I did it!”

Feng Xin laughed, standing fully up. “You did. Great job. Do you want to try it again by yourself?”

Wei Ying nodded. “Yeah!”

Feng Xin was smiling as he handed him another arrow.

Wei Ying slowly went through the same steps as before, taking a breath as he pulled back the string. As he released it though, his bow arm shook from the force of the shot, sending the arrow off course, missing the target, instead sticking into the grass beside it.

“Aww,” he whined. “I wanna do it again.”

“Of course.”

As Feng Xin was reaching for another arrow, Wei Ying looked around the courtyard, his eyes widening as his gaze locked on Mu Qing.

“Gege!” he exclaimed, archery practice forgotten as he started running toward him.

A smile tugged at his lips as Wei Ying slammed into him, looking up at him happily. “Were you having a good time?”

He nodded. “Yeah! Xin-gege was showing me how to shoot.”

“Was he now?”

“Mmhm!”

“I thought it would be a nice way to pass time until you got up,” Feng Xin said, walking over.

Mu Qing nodded. The whole scene had been nice to walk up on, making his whole chest warm.

“Thank you for doing that.” Not only had he been entertaining him, but he had also gotten him dressed and ready for the day.

He shook his head. “It was no trouble.”

Wei Ying tugged at his robes. “Hey gege, Xin-gege said that we’re going to go visit someone today. When can we go?”

Mu Qing placed his hand on top of his head, smoothing out his hair. “It will be soon.” They had agreed to meet around noon and it looked to be around nine. “Why don’t you keep practicing until then?”

“Okay!” Wei Ying let go of him, running back over to the archery range, going for the quiver, starting to prepare for another shot.

Feng Xin stood beside him as they both watched.

“I made sure he got breakfast and everything, so don’t worry.”

Mu Qing nodded. “Thank you.”

“He really is a good kid. He saw the targets and started asking me to show him. I had him string the bow and everything. I think he’ll do well in the future.”

Something warmed his chest at the praise. Though it wasn’t praise for him, but for Wei Ying, it was still something he liked hearing.

“I hope that he does.”

It was quiet between them for a while as they watched Wei Ying nock another arrow, shooting it, just narrowly missing the target. This quiet wasn’t at all like the quiet of the previous night though. This was far more comfortable and companionable. Quiet that was okay to be in.

Internally, he let out a sigh of relief. He didn’t know what he would have done had things still been tense between them.

- - -

Mu Qing had left briefly to take care of a few pieces of administration from his palace and by the time he had finished, it was nearly time to go, so he walked back over to Feng Xin’s palace, finding the two of them sitting back out in the courtyard, leaning up against the railing of one of the walkways, Feng Xin peeling an orange, handing Wei Ying pieces.

As Mu Qing walked up, Wei Ying looked up cheerfully. “Gege!”

He laid his hand on top of his head. “Are you ready to go?”

“Mmhm!”

Feng Xin handed Wei Ying the last piece of orange. “I figured he should eat something before we left.”

Mu Qing nodded. That was probably a good call. It might not end well if he got hungry while they were there.

He turned to Wei Ying. “You’re not to eat anything while we’re there, okay?”

“Why not?” He tilted his head curiously.

He exchanged a glance with Feng Xin. How was he supposed to tell a child that any food cooked there might hurt him?

He hesitated. “It’s just not a good idea.” He wiped some juice off of the corner of his mouth. “If anyone asks, just say that you already ate.”

He nodded slowly. “Okay.”

“Let’s go then.” Mu Qing grabbed hold of his hand, the three of them making their way back inside.

- - -

Whenever they would have days like this just to catch up and talk, they almost always did so at Puqi Shrine. While Xie Lian now lived in Paradise Manor in Ghost City, going there was always awkward for Feng Xin and Mu Qing.

They used an array to get down, not wanting to scare Wei Ying, arriving a little ways away from the shrine itself, having to walk a ways through the countryside. He picked Wei Ying up as they walked, carrying him in his arms as he looked around at everything, eyes eagerly taking in all of the information that they could.

Before long, they reached the shrine, walking through the gate. There, sweeping off the front porch, was a familiar figure in white.

Xie Lian turned as they approached, looking as though he was about to say something, before his gaze locked onto Wei Ying, eyes widening in surprise. He set down his broom, heading toward them.

“Your Highness,” Feng Xin greeted.

Xie Lian just nodded, looking as though he was trying to puzzle something out in his head. Probably about Wei Ying, if Mu Qing had to bet. He should probably explain who he was.

He opened his mouth to speak, Xie Lian beat him to it.

“Did the two of you have a child? I didn’t realize it had been so long since I last saw you…”

Mu Qing sputtered at the implications of that. Have a child as in gave birth to a child? What did he think they were doing? His face burned.

“What?! Of course not! We haven’t even…” He trailed off, not wanting to say that thought out loud. “Besides, we’re both men! How could we possibly have had a child?”

Beside him, Feng Xin started laughing. He shot him an annoyed glance, but it didn’t do anything.

“Well, there’s-”

Mu Qing cut him off before he could say whatever he was going to say. “I don’t want to know. We’re just taking care of him for a little while. That’s all.”

Xie Lian bowed his head - he didn’t think he’d ever get used to him doing that - and said, “Sorry. I shouldn’t have made an assumption.”

He sighed. “It’s all right.”

Feng Xin was still laughing, so he elbowed him in an attempt to get him to stop, much to Wei Ying’s chagrin.

“Gege! Don’t hit your friends! That’s being mean!”

Why was he being scolded by a little kid? And why did it actually make him feel kind of bad?

He sighed. “I’m sorry.”

Wei Ying gave him an approving nod as Feng Xin started laughing again. When he looked up at Xie Lian, he was also smiling, like he was trying not to laugh as well.

He huffed, turning his head away.

In his arms, Wei Ying started talking. “I’m Wei Ying. What’s your name?”

There was a lightness in Xie Lian’s voice as he spoke, “I’m Xie Lian. It’s very nice to meet you, A-Ying.”

Wei Ying hesitated slightly, shifting in his arms. “Umm, Lian-gege, you’re really pretty.”

Xie Lian let out a soft laugh. “Thank you. That’s very nice of you to say.”

Wei Ying giggled, pressing his face against Mu Qing’s shoulder shyly.

Unbelievable. They had barely spoken two sentences to each other and Wei Ying was already enamored by him.

“Well, why don’t we go inside then? I’m curious to hear the story behind this. And I’m sure that San Lang will be interested too.”

Mu Qing inwardly cursed. It was always a tossup on whether or not Hua Cheng would be there whenever they met up with Xie Lian. He definitely didn’t like the guy, but it was clear how happy he made Xie Lian, so he was willing to put up with his presence.

They headed toward the door, going inside.

Hua Cheng was, in fact, inside, standing near the altar as if he was just finishing up rearranging it. He turned toward them as they walked in, gaze rolling over them, an almost uncaring expression on his face as he looked at Wei Ying.

“When did you have a kid?”

A shot of annoyance flashed through his chest. What was it with all of this talk about ‘having’ children? Even if they had, it wasn’t like babies came out looking like seven or eight year olds!

“We’re just looking after him for a bit,” Feng Xin said before Mu Qing could say anything.

Hua Cheng hummed. “Is that so?”

All of a sudden, Wei Ying started struggling in his grip. He let him down, not wanting to get smacked by a child in front of the current company.

As soon as he was on the ground, he took off running, practically slamming himself into Hua Cheng’s legs, looking up at him with excitement. Meanwhile, Hua Cheng was looking back down at him, brow furrowed as if trying to make sense of the child that had just attached himself to him.

Mu Qing took a step forward, intent on grabbing him again. He didn’t think that Hua Cheng would do anything to a child for annoying him - especially not in front of Xie Lian - but the whole situation was still making his stomach leap up into his chest.

Before he could get too far though, Wei Ying started speaking.

“Gege! Gege! Can I ask you something?”

Hua Cheng blinked at him. “Sure.”

“What happened to your eye?”

He couldn’t just go around asking what happened to people’s eyes!

He took another step forward, intent on getting Wei Ying away from him, when, something unexpected happened. Hua Cheng laughed.

He stopped, blinking in surprise. That seemed like a good thing… right?

Hua Cheng knelt down so he was at eye-level with Wei Ying. “You really want to know?”

Wei Ying nodded eagerly. “Yeah!”

He hummed. “There are a lot of stories and rumors about what happened, but the truth is that I gouged it out myself in a moment of madness.”

Why had he told the truth to a child. Imagining something like that would give him nightmares!

Wei Ying’s eyes widened. “Woah. Did it hurt? Can you still see? What happened to it after? Do you still have it?

…Or maybe it wouldn’t.

As Hua Cheng began answering his questions, Mu Qing went to go stand by Feng Xin. It seemed as though they were getting along well enough and he was no longer concerned about his safety.

“Wasn’t expecting that to happen,” he whispered to Feng Xin, crossing his arms over his chest.

Feng Xin shrugged. “He’s good at getting people to like him.”

After a bit, he had finished getting his answers about his eye, so he went on to the next thing he wanted to know. “What’s your name, gege?”

He hummed as if considering it. “Hua Cheng.”

Wei Ying thought for a second. “So, Cheng-gege then?”

Mu Qing fought back a laugh. Him calling The Crimson Rain-Sought Flower, Hua Cheng, Ghost King, Ruler of Ghost City, Cheng-gege of all things was more than a little bit ridiculous.

Hua Cheng seemed to find it funny as well though, letting out another laugh. “That’s fine.”

“So then, I have another question.”

“What is it?”

“How do you know Lian-gege?”

Xie Lian, who had been watching their whole interaction with a small smile on his face stepped into the conversation at that. “San Lang is my husband.”

Wei Ying’s face scrunched in confusion, looking between the two of them before tilting his head, looking at Xie Lian.

“So… Lian-jie?”

Beside him, Feng Xin snorted before coughing, trying and failing to hide his laughs.

Mu Qing rubbed the bridge of his nose. This kid was going to get himself hurt someday if he kept doing things like that.

Luckily though, Xie Lian had the patience of a saint, so he just smiled at him. “No, you were right before. I’m a man.”

That only seemed to confuse Wei Ying further. “But I thought that boys were supposed to marry girls. Like Mommy and Daddy.”

Xie Lian hummed. “That happens a lot of the time, but not always. I love San Lang, so I married him.”

Wei Ying seemed to consider that before nodding his head. “Okay, that makes sense.”

“Though, I’m surprised you haven’t talked about that yet. Mu Qing and Feng Xin are-”

Wei Ying cut him off before he could finish his sentence, eyes wide, pointing his finger at them as he yelled, “Gege, you’re married?!”

Mu Qing sputtered, his face hot. “I’m not…! I mean it’s not like we… we’re not married…”

“Why not?” Wei Ying asked.

How was he even supposed to answer that question?

“Yeah, why not?” Feng Xin suddenly asked from beside him, grinning.

Mu Qing glared at him. “You don’t get to ask me that. It’s not as if you’ve asked me.”

“So if I asked you, what would you say?”

There was no way this conversation was real right now. It was far too proposal-like for him. And he was certainly not getting proposed to in front of Crimson Rain-Sought Flower of all people.

“Obviously not.”

Wei Ying let out a dramatic whine. “Why not?”

Why on Earth was he being ganged up on like this? “Why should I?”

“Don’t you love each other?”

Why was he so invested in this?

“Whatever,” he huffed, turning and heading toward the door, stepping outside. He couldn’t deal with this conversation anymore. Not when it seemed especially suited to embarrass him.

He walked over to the side of the temple, sitting down in the grass underneath a tree, crossing his arms and glaring at nothing.

Him and Feng Xin being married… It would be a lie if he said that he hadn’t at least wondered about that a few times since they had gotten together, but he had always dismissed the thought. What good was marriage to them? The only purpose it would serve would be to announce to the world their relationship. The thought of that was absolutely mortifying. He didn’t need more people knowing about his love life.

He sighed, leaning back against the tree. Besides, it wasn’t as if their relationship would ever be consummated. It was best to just leave things as they were.

All of a sudden, there was the sound of a door opening, and then Xie Lian appeared, walking toward him, sitting down beside him.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring something up that I shouldn’t have.”

He let out a long breath before shaking his head. “It’s fine.”

“A-Ying is very upset.”

He winced. It wasn’t like it was the child’s fault for asking questions like that. He was just genuinely curious. He shouldn’t have stormed out like that. He needed to go apologize to him.

Before he could move to stand though, Xie Lian kept speaking. “Do you mind telling me where exactly he came from and why you’re taking care of him though?”

Right. That was another thing that he should do.

He started explaining to him about the prayer he had received and how, when he had gone to investigate, had determined that his parents were no longer alive. How he had decided to bring him back home with him in order to get him a meal and a bath and also have time to figure out if he had any family friends or relatives who might be able to take him in.

By the end of it, Xie Lian was nodding considerately. “And you don’t want to keep him?”

Why was he asking that now too. “No.”

“He seems to like you a lot.”

“I can’t keep a mortal child with me in Heaven.”

“Why not?”

He scoffed. “How could I? I can’t imagine that would go over well.”

“I don’t think as many people would care about it as you think.”

“I’m not keeping him.”

Xie Lian looked at him for a few seconds before sighing. “All right. I won’t force you to do something you don’t want to do. Although… if you don’t end up finding anyone, maybe we could take him in.” He laughed. “San Lang seems to like him a lot already.”

Mu Qing narrowed his eyes. The thought of Hua Cheng taking the child he had found didn’t sit well with him.

Xie Lian laid a hand on his shoulder. “Anyways, you should go back and see him now. Make sure he knows that you don’t hate him.”

Mu Qing sighed, getting to his feet. He was definitely right about that. He was probably in the midst of freaking out.

He walked back to the door, stepping inside, Xie Lian walking behind him.

As soon as the door opened, Wei Ying turned to face him from where he was currently being held in Feng Xin’s arms. His eyes were red as if he had been crying.

Why had he been such an idiot. Why had he let this child cry? He needed to keep his temper in better check - at least around him.

“Gege!” Wei Ying cried, struggling out of Feng Xin’s arms and bounding toward him, grabbing tightly to his robe. “I’m sorry! Please don’t hate me!”

He laid a gentle hand on top of his head. “I don’t hate you. Don’t worry.”

Wei Ying sniffled, looking up at him. “You don’t?”

He shook his head. “I’m sorry for scaring you.”

“It’s okay,” he mumbled, burying his face against him as Mu Qing began petting his head, chest swelling with affection.

“I’m almost surprised at how well you’re able to make children cry,” Hua Cheng spoke from across the room.

Mu Qing glared at him, the only thing stopping himself from biting back being the child in his arms, clinging to him. He wasn’t about to scare him any more.

Once Wei Ying had slowly extracted himself from his arms, things went on almost as normal as they talked and got caught up on the things that had been going on in each other’s lives.

Before long though, it was time to go.

They said their goodbyes, Wei Ying continuing to cling to him as they headed home.

As they walked into his palace, one of his junior officials ran into them near the door. He eyed Wei Ying curiously before bowing his head.

“General. Someone from the Palace of Ling Wen stopped by earlier and left a report. It’s in your office.”

He subconsciously gripped Wei Ying more tightly in his arms.

“All right. Thank you.”

It was finally time to get him back to where he belonged.

Chapter Text

Mu Qing took a deep breath, setting the paper down onto his desk in front of him. Across from him, Feng Xin was looking at him expectantly.

He had put off looking at the report until they had eaten dinner and then put Wei Ying to bed, some part of him wanting to keep this information unknown for as long as possible, but after he had fallen asleep, there was no putting it off anymore.

And so, he and Feng Xin had come into his office and he had read the report.

“His father was a cultivator named Wei Changze. He used to be a servant of the Jiang Clan of Yunmeng before he eloped with a wandering cultivator - Cangse Sanren, disciple of Baoshan Sanren.” Mu Qing crossed his arms over his chest. “According to this, there were rumors that the leader of the Jiang Clan was actually in love with Cangse Sanren, but she rejected him.”

Feng Xin hummed consideringly. “Okay, so then there are two options as to where to take him.”

Mu Qing nodded. Either the Jiang Clan or Baoshan Sanren. Surely, one or the other of them would take him. Despite the good news, something tugged painfully at his chest.

“I’m thinking the Jiang Clan might be best. They’re a respected sect. And, apparently one of the requirements to train under Baoshan Sanren is to not leave her mountain, so I don’t know that she would take the child of a disciple who did.”

“And if the leader was actually in love with his mother, he might be willing to take him in just to honor her,” Feng Xin added.

Or, he might refuse to take him out of bitterness. Some part of him hoped that would be the case, but he quickly quashed it. That would be bad.

Mu Qing sighed. “I’ll take him tomorrow then. Pretend to be a wandering cultivator who found him and managed to find out his parents’ history.”

Feng Xin bit his lip, looking like he wanted to say something, but instead just nodded. “All right.”

He knew exactly what he was going to say there. He didn’t know if he would be able to take hearing him say it again. Even just the thought of it was causing something uneasy to take hold in his chest.

“Let’s head back then. I don’t want A-Ying to wake up and get scared because no one is there.” Mu Qing stood from his desk, heading toward the door.

They got back to the room, keeping quiet as they got ready for bed, not wanting to wake up the child who was sleeping soundly in the bed.

As soon as he was ready, he climbed into bed, not hesitating as he pulled Wei Ying toward him, hugging him against his chest. Instantly, some of the uneasiness began to fade.

He took a deep breath, burying his face against the top of his head as Feng Xin got into bed beside him.

The movement seemed to have been enough to wake Wei Ying slightly as he shifted, turning his head up toward him.

“Gege?”

Mu Qing hummed.

His voice was filled with sleep. “I wanted to ask you a question. Can I?”

“What is it?”

“You’re a god, aren’t you?”

He wasn't entirely surprised he had figured that out. In fact, it was probably more outstanding that he hadn't asked until now.

“Why do you think that?”

Wei Ying took a breath, snuggling his face against his shoulder, his voice coming out slightly muffled. “Mommy told me that if you pray to a god that they'll sometimes come help you. I did and then you came.”

He smiled as he ran gentle fingers through his hair. “You're right. I wanted to help you.”

He made a sleepy yet happy sounding noise. “Then gege…” his voice trailed off into even breathing, falling asleep in his arms.

He continued to pet his head, uncertainty beginning to curl in his gut. What was going to be the end of that sentence? What was he going to request he do? For him to stay?

He couldn't though. He deserved to have a normal life growing up with mortals. It wasn't fair to keep him there. He couldn't take that away from him. He didn't need to grow up concerned about the politics of Heaven and all the gods there.

He couldn't keep him there.

Lost in his thoughts, he didn't notice Feng Xin reaching over until he touched his arm, making him jump. “What?”

When he looked up, Feng Xin was frowning. “You okay?”

He took a deep breath. “I'm fine.”

“Are you sure?” He didn't look convinced.

Mu Qing knew exactly what he was trying to get him to say. That he wanted to keep Wei Ying. That he didn't want to send him to the Jiangs. That he wanted to keep him there where he knew he would be safe.

“Yes, I'm sure.” He huffed, turning his head to bury his face against Wei Ying's hair, not wanting to look at him.

If he said any of that out loud, then that would solidify those feelings. Then, he wasn't sure if he would be able to go through with taking him tomorrow.

Feng Xin sighed before shifting, wrapping an arm over his shoulders. That simple action made some of the feelings in his chest begin to settle. At least he had someone with him.

It was quiet for a little while before Feng Xin spoke. “Just… don't do something that's going to hurt you.”

“...I won't.” The words fell from his tongue like a lie.

- - -

When Mu Qing woke the next morning, he was immediately greeted with Wei Ying's face, laying a few inches away. As soon as he opened his eyes, an excited smile crossed his face.

“Gege! You're finally awake. I thought you were gonna sleep foreveeerrr.” He moved upright, beginning to tug at the blankets surrounding them, pulling at his arms.

Mu Qing sat up, his sleep-addled brain trying to comprehend the child pestering him awake.

All of a sudden, from the other side of the bed, Feng Xin wrapped an arm around Wei Ying's waist, pulling him off of him, hugging him against his chest.

“It's still early,” Feng Xin said, his eyes closed.

Wei Ying let out a laugh, struggling in his grasp. “But Xin-gege, I want to get up now.”

“It’s not time yet,” Feng Xin said, easily holding him.

After a few seconds, Wei Ying stopped moving, seemingly resigned to his fate - before Feng Xin suddenly shifted, throwing him down onto the bed, lightly pinning him down, resulting in a fit of giggles from Wei Ying.

Mu Qing watched them, a light smile on his face, as they started a bout of faux wrestling, Feng Xin doing a wonderful act of being of a similar strength as a child. As he began to fully wake up though, the sight made his chest ache, smile falling from his face. This was the first and last time he would ever see this.

Suddenly, Wei Ying yelped before beginning to laugh profusely. “Xin-gege! That tickles!”

Feng Xin had a hand on Wei Ying’s side, also starting to laugh as he tickled him, Wei Ying flailing his arms and legs, tears beginning to form at the corners of his eyes.

He made eye contact with Mu Qing. “Gege! Help!”

He couldn’t help the smile that pulled at his lips as he reached over, wrapping arms around his waist, pulling him out of Feng Xin’s grasp and into his own.

Wei Ying was breathing hard, his chest heaving, yet a few stray giggles were falling from his lips.

Feng Xin reached over, using his thumb to wipe the tears out of his eyes.

“Can we get up now? I'm hungry.” Wei Ying leaned his head back against his chest.

“I guess we should go get some breakfast then,” Feng Xin answered.

Mu Qing squeezed him once against him before letting go. “Let's get dressed first.”

Wei Ying nodded, climbing out of his lap and out of the bed.

They got dressed and then headed to the kitchen, Wei Ying chattering about nothing as they cooked breakfast.

It was almost hard to believe that this wasn't going to happen after today. It had only been a couple of days, but it was already so normal.

He pushed the thought away. He couldn't be thinking like that.

Before he knew it, they were finishing up breakfast.

Wei Ying swung his legs under the table. “What are we doing today, gege?”

Mu Qing wiped the side of his mouth with his thumb. “We're going to go see someone.”

“Really? Who?”

“Someone your parents knew.”

He hummed. “Do I know them?”

“I'm not sure. You might have met them when you were a baby, but you'll have to ask them.”

Wei Ying nodded thoughtfully. “Okay, I will.”

Feng Xin stood from the other side of the table. “I'll get going now then.”

Mu Qing nodded. “I'll see you later.”

Wei Ying let out a disappointed noise. “You're not coming with us, Xin-gege?”

He shook his head. “Not today.”

“Why not?”

Feng Xin gave him a soft smile. “I think the two of you should spend some time together.”

Mu Qing was slightly conflicted at that. While he did want to spend a little bit more time with Wei Ying and it would be less conspicuous for him to bring him there by himself, at the same time, he didn't really want to do it alone.

He would be fine though. He could do this.

Wei Ying nodded, his expression a little sad. “Okay… I'll see you later.”

Feng Xin reached over, ruffling his hair, smiling at him. “Bye.” He turned to Mu Qing, giving him a look that he could tell was trying to get him to reconsider. “See you later.”

He crossed his arms over his chest. “Yeah.”

With that, Feng Xin left, leaving him alone with Wei Ying.

“When are we going?” Wei Ying asked.

“As soon as I get ready.”

Wei Ying nodded, standing up, reaching for his hand.

He took it, leading him back to his bedroom. He wanted to put on less ornate robes - something that would line up with the story he was planning on telling them.

When he was done getting dressed, he turned to Wei Ying, who was sitting on his bed, swinging his legs.

“Are you ready to go?”

Wei Ying nodded, eagerly jumping down from the bed. “Yeah!”

He took his hand and then they were off.

- - -

Arriving in Yunmeng left something bitter in his mouth. It was undeniably beautiful there - winding rivers and ponds filled to the brim with lotus flowers cutting through the landscape, but even still, he didn't like it.

Wei Ying seemed entranced by it though, staring at everything he saw, asking him questions as he clutched his hand tightly. It was a good thing that he seemed interested. If he wound up living there, it would be a good thing if he enjoyed the area.

It was a bit of a trek to get to Lotus Pier from there - the actual residence of the Jiang Clan, but really, he didn’t mind that or the extra time spent with Wei Ying.

They had to hire a boat to take them the last stretch of distance and as soon as they were on the water, Wei Ying was eagerly leaning over the edge at the river, talking excitedly as he pointed out plants and fish. The whole time, Mu Qing had a careful grip on his wrist, keeping him from leaning out too far.

Before long though, in the midst of a lake, large, wooden gates appeared in the distance, a dock jutting out before them, buzzing with people in what appeared to be a market.

It was slightly odd to him to have a cultivation sect be so lively, but considering they were such a successful sect, it didn’t seem to hinder them in any way.

As they got closer to the dock, his heart started to get heavier and heavier. He didn’t want to be there. He wanted to go back home.

Despite that though, he carried on, once docked, he helped Wei Ying out of the boat, picking him up as they made their way through the marketplace that had been set up in front, striding toward the gates with purpose, knowing that he couldn’t hesitate.

There were a pair of disciples at the gates, dressed in deep purple robes, chatting to each other as they stood guard. That was a little too laid back for his tastes.

The two of them looked up as they approached the gates.

Mu Qing spoke first, not wanting to waste his time with the back and forth that was sure to follow. “I need to speak with the sect leader regarding Wei Changze and Cangse Sanren.”

The two disciples glanced at each other before turning back to him. “May I ask who you are?” One of them asked.

“Just a wandering cultivator.”

They exchanged another glance before one of them shrugged. “All right. Wait here a minute.”

With that, he turned, heading inside the gates.

Mu Qing shifted his weight back to stand more comfortably. He hoped that this wouldn’t take too long, but who really knew.

All of a sudden, Wei Ying tugged at his collar, getting his attention. “Gege, who are those? The people you said?”

He adjusted him in his arms. “Your parents.”

“They really know them here?”

“The sect leader definitely should.”

“Then do you think they might know where they are?”

He fought back a wince. He still hadn’t explained to him that his parents were likely dead. How was he supposed to explain to a child that his parents weren’t coming back?

“Maybe they will,” he said instead.

They only had to wait a few more minutes before the gate opened again, the disciple stepping back out. “Sect Leader Jiang wants to see you. If you’ll follow me.”

Mu Qing nodded, following the disciple inside the gates.

Much like the outside, the inside was filled with areas surrounded by water, docks sprawling.

Wei Ying was looking around in amazement at everything around them - that was good. He would like it there. As long as he was going to be happy, then he was okay.

He was led through the walkways until they arrived at a building, the disciple knocking on the door. “Sect Leader, I’ve brought them.”

Only a few seconds had passed when a voice called back. “Please, come in.”

The disciple opened the door for him, stepping aside to let him through.

Mu Qing stepped into the room. It appeared to be an office of some sort, books piled high on shelves and a desk in the middle of the room stocked with paper and writing utensils. At the desk was a man also dressed in the same shade of purple as the disciples, but the hairpiece he wore indicated that this was probably the sect leader.

He stood as Mu Qing entered the room, glancing curiously at Wei Ying.

He gave him a calm smile. “Welcome, I’m Jiang Fengmian, leader of the Yunmeng Jiang Sect. May I ask who you are?”

He adjusted Wei Ying in his arms, who was looking on curiously. If possible, this was a situation wherein he would prefer to not give his name. While he had aliases and disguises he could have used, he had chosen not to in order to keep Wei Ying from getting confused or questioning him on why he wasn’t using his real name.

Before he could even respond though, Wei Ying was speaking. “My name’s Wei Ying.”

Jiang Fengmian’s eyes widened slightly at the introduction. He looked to Mu Qing. “I’ll guess that this is what you wanted to discuss.”

Mu Qing nodded. “This is the son of Wei Changze and Cangse Sanren. I was in the town of Yiling when I came across him. From the sounds of it, they went on a night hunt and never returned, so he had been living on the streets for some time.” He glanced down at Wei Ying, hoping that Jiang Fengmian would understand the implication of that. “I did some digging and found that you were friends with his parents.”

There was a sad in look in his eyes as he nodded, maintaining his composure. “I see. I was, in fact, close with his parents. Word hadn’t yet reached me, or else I would have searched for him sooner.”

He turned to address Wei Ying. “I’m sorry I didn’t come find you before now.”

Wei Ying smiled brightly. “It’s okay! Gege found me. He even chased the dogs away for me.”

Jiang Fengmian smiled back - he knew from experience just how contagious his smiles were. “I’m glad that he did.”

He turned back to Mu Qing. “Am I correct to assume your intentions by bringing him here?”

Mu Qing swallowed hard before nodding. “He deserves to have a stable home.”

“I’d be more than willing to provide that to the son of my old friends. He will be well taken care of here.”

Mu Qing took a deep breath. “Thank you.”

“I have a son and a daughter of a similar age to him, so don’t worry about him having friends here either.”

He was clearly trying to make him feel better about leaving him there and while part of him was slightly annoyed that he was able to read the emotions he was trying so desperately to keep buried, it also was making him feel a little better about the whole thing.

“I’m glad.”

He set Wei Ying down on the floor. “This is where you’re going to be staying from now on.”

He nodded. “Okay.”

Part of him was kind of stung by how fast he accepted it. Wasn’t he at least a little bit sad that he wouldn’t be staying with him anymore? Then again, it was probably better if he wasn’t sad about it.

He cleared his throat, looking up at Jiang Fengmian. “I’ll probably get going then.”

He didn’t want to drag this out for any longer than it needed to be.

“You’re more than welcome to stay the night here.”

He shook his head. “Thank you, but I should still go now.”

“All right. Thank you for going through the trouble of bringing him here. I’ll make sure to take good care of him.”

Mu Qing just nodded, turning toward the door. He didn’t want to be there anymore. He wanted to be anywhere but there.

All of a sudden, he was stopped by a small hand grabbing hold of his own.

His breath caught in his throat as he turned to see Wei Ying looking up at him, confusion written across his face.

“Gege, where are you going?”

He swallowed hard. “It’s time for me to go.”

Wei Ying furrowed his brow. “Then I’ll go too.”

“You’re staying here.”

“Then when are you coming back?”

He shook his head. “I’m not.”

“Then I’m going too.”

He bit his lip, kneeling down to be at eye-level with him. He wanted to gather him up in his arms and bring him back home with him. He wanted to cook for him and make him more clothes. He wanted to see him grow healthier until he was no different from other children his age.

Even though he wanted it, it wasn’t something he would allow himself.

He had someone here who was willing to take him in. Someone who was a normal human who would provide for him and make sure he grew up well. Someone who would give him the opportunity to grow up with other children and give him a childhood that wasn’t filled with the politics of Heaven.

He laid a hand on his shoulder. “I’m leaving, but you’re staying here.”

He shook his head, voice filled with the precursor to tears. “I wanna stay with you.”

His chest hurt.

“You can’t.”

He took a deep breath before picking him up, forcing himself to not hesitate as he brought him over to Jiang Fengmian, who had been watching the exchange, something sad on his face. He decided to ignore whatever pity that was, instead pushing Wei Ying into his arms, quickly turning away.

“Gege, you can’t leave me too.”

He pushed down his feelings, striding back toward the door. The last thing he heard before he exited the room was Wei Ying’s voice, distorted by sobs.

”Gege!"

He took a deep breath, walking as quickly as he could back out of the sect, not stopping until he was able to find a place to make a teleportation array to get back home.

He arrived back in his palace, but quickly made to leave it, instead walking just down the road toward Feng Xin’s. He didn’t know exactly what expression he was making, but anyone he came across quickly got out of his way. That was just as well though. He didn’t want to deal with anyone else at that moment in time, save for one person.

When he reached the palace, he headed toward the courtyard, making his first attempt to find Feng Xin.

He wasn’t there.

He went back inside, heading toward his study.

Not there either.

He went to his bedroom, opening the door.

He also wasn’t there.

He diligently went room by room, trying to find the man, growing more and more frustrated as he didn’t seem to be home.

He walked back to his bedroom, sitting down on the bed, reciting the password for his personal communication array.

Hey, where are you?”

He had to wait a few seconds for a reply.

Sorry, something came up. I’ll be back soon.

Crossing his arms over his chest, he replied. What came up?

A few more seconds passed. A yao. They needed help fighting it.

By ‘they’, he likely meant his junior officials. If it was powerful enough that they couldn’t take care of it on their own, that meant it was decently formidable, which also meant that he hadn’t left to do something dumb, so he couldn’t really be mad at him.

He sighed. Get back soon.

He cut the communication array before he could respond.

Laying down on the bed, he turned over, burying his face into the blankets. It smelled like him. That was nice.

Still though, stupid Feng Xin. Leaving when he knew he was probably going to come back upset.

All he wanted was to bury himself in his arms and have him distract him from all the thoughts and emotions coursing through him. Now that he wasn’t walking somewhere or looking for Feng Xin, all of them were coming full force without the distraction.

Wei Ying’s cries to him as he left were playing on loop in his brain.

He closed his eyes, clutching the blanket tightly. He really had left him again. He had given him a place to stay and then ripped it away from him, passing him along to someone else.

That wasn’t fair. If he was going to do that, he shouldn’t have given him a place to stay to begin with. He should have just made sure that he was okay, maybe given him some food, and left him where he had found him. He should have found out the information about him and done something to direct Jiang Fengmian to find him instead.

He shouldn’t have grown attached to him.

He took a deep breath, refusing to let himself cry, despite the pressure building in his eyes and tightness in his throat. All of this had been completely avoidable had he done things differently. It was his own fault that he was feeling like this.

He wished that Wei Ying was curled up beside him, clutching his fingers into his robe, smile on his face as he talked to him about whatever was on his mind. He had only had him there for a few days, but he severely missed that.

He pressed his face further into the blankets.

- - -

He must have fallen asleep at some point because he woke up to a gentle hand running through his hair.

He blearily blinked his eyes open, rolling over to see Feng Xin sitting next to him, his clothes covered in dirt and grime like he hadn’t even bothered to change them before coming to see him.

Feng Xin laid his hand on his cheek, calloused thumb running under his eye as he frowned. “Mu Qing-”

He quickly realized the wetness right there. He couldn’t remember if he had cried before he had fallen asleep or somehow during it, but he didn’t know if he could take a comment on it.

Instead, he cut him off, tugging on his sleeve. “You’re filthy.”

Feng Xin gave him an exasperated look before sighing, not hesitating as he began tugging off his chestplate, throwing it down on the floor before shrugging off the top of his outer robe.

Mu Qing watched, dumbfounded at what he was doing until he began pulling his inner robe off his shoulders, revealing his bare chest underneath.

He squeezed his eyes shut. “What are you doing?!”

Feng Xin didn’t answer, instead, he wrapped his arms around him, pulling him tightly against him, holding his head against the crook of his neck.

His heart was pounding. “Feng Xin?”

“You can’t complain that I’m dirty now.”

He sniffled, still forcing back tears. He mumbled into his shoulder, “I can complain that you’re sweaty though.”

Feng Xin squeezed him tightly. “You’re just going to have to put up with that one.”

He very much wasn’t used to someone hugging him like this when he was upset - actually, he wasn’t used to people even realizing that he was upset like this. Anger was fine, but emotions like sadness were weaknesses he couldn’t afford to have.

It was odd to be so vulnerable with someone - and to feel safe in that vulnerability.

He relaxed into his hold, letting himself be embraced as he started running soft fingers through his hair. That was nice. It almost reminded him of when he was little and his mother would do that for him when he was sick or upset. It was undeniably calming.

After a few minutes, Feng Xin spoke. “I take it that you had a rough time with Wei Ying?”

He hesitated before responding, biting his lip. “He wanted to stay… he said that I was abandoning him.”

Feng Xin took a deep breath. “Did you want to keep him?”

Very slowly, he nodded. “But I couldn’t.”

“Why not?”

“Because it’s not fair to him to raise him here. Not when he has someone who cares about him that can give him a normal life. This isn’t exactly a good place to have a kid.”

“You know, you’re one of the smarter people that I know, but you’re also really stupid sometimes.”

He furrowed his brow, leaning back. “What’s that-” He was cut off by Feng Xin pressing his face back against his shoulder.

“If you want him to stay and he also wants to stay, then why care about what other people think? Do what will make the two of you happy.”

It wasn’t that simple though. “But-”

“No.”

“No?”

Feng Xin sighed, pulling back, looking him in the eyes. “I don’t like seeing you like this. If you don’t go get the kid back, then I will.”

He lowered his gaze.

Was it really okay for him to do something like this? For him to take a child and raise them?

Then again, he did, in fact, want to - it pained him to admit it, but Feng Xin had been right about that from the beginning.

He had never been one to give up on what he wanted to do.