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“What the hell is that ruckus?!” Nie Mingjue’s brows rose till his hairline in shock. “Who is making that much noise inside Yunshen Buzhichu?!” He asked Lan Xichen in disbelief as they walked down the path towards the start of the classrooms and dormitories.
“Ah, that…” Lan Xichen sighed and shook his head with a fond smile, “is Jingyi…he is a…distant relative…” he chuckled.
“How distant?” Nie Mingjue gasped when they arrived at the scene.
Lan Jingyi, all of three years old, was running in circles screaming at the top of his voice, as two senior disciples tried to wrangle him into the Library Pavilion.
“I see he is being punished again,” Lan Xichen sighed once more and addressed the third senior disciple who was watching his peers helplessly. “Copying the rules?”
“Yes,” the disciple bowed quickly and then again, deeper and more formal, on seeing Nie Mingjue. “We…are trying our best to get him inside but he keeps saying—”
“I CANNOT BE TAMED!!” Lan Jingyi yelled as he made yet another lap, this time around Lan Xichen and Nie Mingjue, with not a hint of fear in his eyes.
“What the—” Nie Mingjue twisted from side to side to follow the boy with his astounded eyes. “How has he not been kicked out yet!?” He blurted.
“Well,” Lan Xichen lowered his voice as he nudged Nie Mingue to do the same, “the elders are considering it…” he looked at the lively boy with a sad smile. “They think he won’t assimilate in Yunshen Buzhichu.”
“Xiongzhang, Nie-zongzhu,” a deep voice interrupted them before Nie Mingjue could respond.
“Wangji,” Lan Xichen greeted his brother with a warm smile. “Are you done with the junior disciple lectures for the day?”
“Wangji is teaching the juniors?!” Nie Mingjue was surprised by the revelation.
“Yes, the youngest ones,” Lan Xichen grinned in amusement, looking at his brother adoringly.
“They…are the most vulnerable of us…” Lan Wangji said in a low voice, glancing at Jingyi. “It is important that they are taught with care and patience,” something in his gaze softened on seeing the boy attempting to climb a tree to escape his shixiongs.
“What will happen to him if he has to leave here?” Nie Mingjue asked, already feeling soft for the boy himself.
“Help me!!” Jingyi screamed just then and ran right into Nie Mingjue, begging for protection, evidently utterly oblivious to whose leg he was clinging.
Nie Mingjue’s face turned red and he had visions of a tiny Nie Huaisang clinging to him in a similar manner, begging for mercy. He could see Lan Xichen suppress a laugh and even Lan Wangji’s face held a shade of amusement.
“Hey! You!” Nie Mingjue grabbed the little boy by his collar and peeled him off his legs. “Why are you running around screaming bloody murder?!” He growled as the boy dangled from his hand and looked at him with wide eyes, falling silent instantly.
Nie Mingjue felt a wave of pride at having managed to subdue the menace.
“Bloody murder!!!” Jingyi screamed suddenly, laughing when everyone gasped at the new word he had learnt.
Nie Mingjue dropped the boy, mortified and beyond humiliated, wanting to hide his face from Lan Xichen.
“BLOODY RULES!!” Jingyi began yelling and started running again, dodging even Lan Xichen’s attempt to hold him in place. “Why are there soooo many?!?!” He whined and sang, seeming like he was quite enjoying himself.
“Don’t say that!” Nie Mingjue couldn’t stand it anymore.
“YOU said it too!” Jingyi huffed at Nie Mingjue.
“That is not a word for kids!” Nie Mingjue tried to reason with him.
“Why not!?” Jingyi turned to Lan Xichen and then back to Nie Mingjue.
“Because it—” Nie Mingjue tried to come up with a suitable explanation but failed.
“Aha!” Jingyi tugged on Lan Xichen’s robes to get his attention, as if they weren’t all already staring at him. “See! He doesn’t know either!! Some rules are dumb!! Even adults don’t know why they’re there!!” With that he ran off again, laughing like he had won a battle.
Just as the boy began attempting to climb the tree again all the way to the roof of the library, Lan Wangji took a step forward.
“Lan Jingyi,” he called out, his voice gentle, his tone even. “You will get hurt.”
The effect on the boy was immediate and remarkable. He stood up straight and smoothed his robes before looking at Lan Wangji with a shy smile.
“Hanguang-Jun!” The senior disciples sighed in relief. “We have to watch over him as he writes the rules,” they reached for Jingyi finally but Lan Wangji raised his hand.
“Jingyi,” Lan Wangji addressed the boy directly.
“Yes, Hanguang-Jun!!” Jingyi looked at him with all his focus and concentration.
“Please wait for me in the library…” Lan Wangji requested softly. “And do not scream inside the library, other people are studying.”
“Okay, Hanguang-Jun!!” Jingyi screamed louder, his way of convincing them that he understood and would comply.
“I will watch over his punishment,” Lan Wangji dismissed the disciples who only groaned in further relief and left hurriedly.
“Wangji,” Lan Xichen said after Jingyi had disappeared into the library as well, “doesn’t he remind you of Wei-gongzi?” He smiled and turned towards his brother. “A-Yuan would like him,” he chuckled.
Lan Wangji stiffened, his fists clenching behind his back as his gaze lowered slowly. After a brief moment, he bowed to Nie Mingjue and Lan Xichen before heading into the library himself.
“He does remind me of Wei Wuxian,” Nie Mingjue whispered when Lan Wangji was gone. “Do you really think they will kick him out?”
“Not anymore,” Lan Xichen grinned as he thought of his brother’s reaction, the way Wangji looked even more determined to take care of Jingyi now. “He’ll be fine. The Lan clan could do with a little un-Lan disciple like him. And anyway…it was fun watching you attempt to interact with him, da-ge…” he began laughing, eyes crinkling into crescents.
Nie Mingjue sighed and shook his head but couldn’t suppress his smile as Lan Xichen beamed radiantly, teasing him for the rest of their walk.