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In the family pavilion at Lotus Pier, Jiang Cheng and Wei WuXian were seated around the dining table, multiple jars of multiple types of wine surrounding them. Most of the jars were empty, and it appeared the Jiang sect leader was more inebriated than his Shi-xiong.
"So, do we want to discuss why you felt it necessary to keep the whole core transfer A Secret from me?" There was a sharpness in the Jiang sect leader's voice which was only there when he was not holding whatever he felt inside.
Wei WuXian paused, understanding that Jiang Cheng was far more intoxicated than he was. It didn't mean he wouldn't remember what was happening now, but his inhibitions were lowered.
No, the inebriation followed by amnesia the next day was something Lan WangJi did, and that clan-wide lack of tolerance to alcohol was why there was a rule against it in the clan rules. And even though Lan XiChen had learned how to burn off the alcohol, he still typically didn't drink.
While his time at GuSuLan had not removed his alcohol tolerance, Wei WuXian didn't drink nearly as much as he used to. And definitely not nearly as much as he had in the weeks after his first trip to the Burial Mounds.
That period of near-constant inebriation was in reaction to how he'd treated Lan WangJi. The rest of it was due to having been immersed in resentful energy for those 3 months and it feeding his own doubts about his self-worth, of which there were legion.
One thing he did not regret, though, was the transfer itself. Even if it meant Jiang WanYin was angry with him and would remain so. It was the right thing to do.
"Do you remember how angry you were with me in the temple? You accused me of betraying you because I ate with the Wen. I only rescued the innocent ones who had nothing to do with nearly destroying Lotus Pier. Wen Ning was assigned there only after they took over. And he was a foot solider. He had nothing to do with what Wen Chao did. He helped me rescue you and your parents' bodies from Wen Chao."
Jiang Cheng's expression shifted, making it obvious he did not follow. "Why would he help you?"
"Because I found him practicing archery during one of the competitions, and advised him on how to improve his skills. The advice helped, and he ended up being part of the competition, even though his cousins were all horrible people."
"You're telling me you have his loyalty because you were nice to him?!"
Wei WuXian nodded. "Pretty much. That's what I mean when I say he has nothing to do with what happened. He's a fierce ghost now because I told Wen Qing I'd save her brother. It was a return favor because they helped save you. I'm working on something now that would remove the ability for him to be controlled by any external forces, myself included."
"And you tried to steal her from me too!" There was a bit of slurring in his words, Jiang Cheng's voice becoming petulant.
"Aiyah, Jiang Cheng, she and I were never interested in each other that way. I don't know if you believe that, but it's true."
Jiang Cheng pulled something out of the pouch at his waist. It was the comb he'd bought for Wen Qing decades ago, still wrapped in the handkerchief. It was almost as pristine as the day he'd purchased it from a street vendor, decades ago.
"I tried to offer it to her several times. She took it once and then returned it because she told me there were things I didn't know about that would affect any relationship she and I had. She returned it after the Sunshot Campaign was over."
Wei WuXian nodded. "That was long after the core transfer happened. As you heard me tell Lan Zhan in the temple, I ordered Wen Ning not to tell anyone. That happened even before he was a fierce ghost. It was going to be a secret the three of us - Wen Qing, Wen Ning, and I - took to our graves. Except that Wen Ning is now only kind of dead, I returned from the dead, and Qing-Jie is still dead."
"Why did you want to keep it a secret?"
"Because you would be angry that I lied about the method, even though it did restore what you'd lost."
"You're more than just your core!"
"I know. And I think I proved that. We both know now that you lost your core to save me, and then I lost mine when I gave it to you. You are a sect leader. You need a core more than I do. And it was my duty as Head Disciple to replace what you'd lost."
"That's not true! Didn't stop you from spending most of your time drunk afterwards. And then stealing Wen Qing from me." The tone was petulant.
Wei WuXian sighed. "Wen Qing was like ShiJie to me, except that instead of soup, she had acupuncture needles. And while she was a Wen, she didn't really have anything to do with what her more distant family did. Yes at MuXi, they did take her with them but they were probably under orders to do from Wen RoHan because she was there as a demonstration of what he'd do to her and her family if she disobeyed him. Otherwise she probably would have been left with us."
"How do you know?"
"I have eyes. And people do things around the Son of a Servant when no one else is around that they wouldn't do around sect heirs and leaders."
"That's not true!" The protest was petulant.
Wei WuXian inclined his head slightly, a gesture he'd picked up from Lan WangJi which had several meanings. This time, it was 'you're being an idiot but I'm not fighting with you about this. "Yes, actually, it is. I'm not arguing with you on this but it is true."
"If you say so."
"I never betrayed you. There was a way to save your life and if it meant I had to give you my golden core, so you'd be able to be sect leader, I did it. The decision to transfer my core to you was not made by the Wen. It was my decision, beginning to end. I am technically still your right hand, just not as obvious and visible. And I never betrayed you. Yes, I helped the Wen remnants. They were innocent bystanders and mostly old people who were healers and civilians. And at least one child. Not helping them would be like your mother trying to kill me because I'm the child of my parents. Or say if someone had turned us in just after Lotus Pier fell to Wen Chao."
"But they were Wen!" There was the hint of a slur in Jiang Cheng's words, his eyes glassy in a way suggesting he'd had far too much to drink.
Just as well, though. All of the wine jars around them were now empty.
"Yes, and now there are no more except for two, one of whom isn't exactly alive anymore. And the other one was raised a Lan and appears to be relatively comfortable thinking of himself as part of GuSuLan. The Jiang clan sect is rebuilt and stronger than ever. I don't foresee that happening with the Wen. And also, they never fed me any of their rice or grain. It was a collective effort to gather enough food to ensure we survived. I won't pretend to know what you were going through politically, because I didn't. What I did know is that the treatment of the remaining Wen by the Jin was wrong, and I swore several oaths when I was younger to stand up for justice, curb the violent, and live without regret."
"That's not anything you swore with me!"
Wei WuXian sighed. "No, it was at the lantern ceremony when we were at Cloud Recesses."
"Lan-er-gonzi again." Jiang Cheng's tone was grumpy.
To Wei WuXian, it was on par with the night that Lan WangJi had attempted to steal chickens and given them to him. The pout was certainly similar.
"You are fine with him when you're sober, Jiang Cheng. We've been through this already: we have a family connection, but he and I have more of an emotional connection now. We might have had it then too, but I don't know if I was paying close enough attention."
Jiang Cheng nodded, but hesitantly, in the fashion of someone clinging to what little remained of consciousness.
"Come on. Up we go. Let's get you to bed before you fall asleep out here. You'll wake up with a stiff neck if you do."
"But I. Don't. Wanna." The words were so slurred as to be almost unrecognizable.
Wei WuXian smiled to himself. "You'll regret it in the morning if I don't."
He lifted his nearly unconscious ShiDi, draping one of Jiang Cheng's arms over his own shoulders, walking slowly over to the Sect Leader's room.
After getting him settled in, he sent word to the kitchen regarding their Sect Leader's likely condition once he awoke in the morning, then retrieved a pitcher of tea, a cup, and a tray, returning to Jiang Cheng's living space and setting it on the table beside the bed.
"Wei. Wu. Xian. Don't leave?"
"This is your room, Jiang Cheng. We haven't shared a room for a long time. I'm going back to my bedroom, which is nearby. Rest, and I'll see you in the morning."
That seemed to be the last of Jiang Cheng's conscious thought. Wei WuXian smiled slightly.
"This is getting to be a weird habit: putting drunk people who aren't me to bed."
Then, he returned to his own room, gathered his own hydration, drank some, removed his outer robes, lay down, and was asleep before his head hit the pillow.
+++++
Lan Zhan,
Remember when I was maudlin a few nights ago? Jiang Cheng and I finally finished clearing the air about the golden core transfer. It took a lot of alcohol, and some serious discussion.
He accused me of trying to steal Wen Qing from him. We weren't interested in one another that way. She was more like ShiJie than not. Except ShiJie didn't use needles.
We addressed his accusation of my having betrayed the Jiangs. You and I know I didn't. It took a little while for him to come around but I think he's there now.
I don't think I've ever seen him drink as much as he did the night we cleared the air. He'll remember most of it because he's got a higher alcohol tolerance than either of us.
Either way, I think we finally cleared the air on the main issues standing between us. Took both of us long enough I think.
I miss you. Hear from you soon.
Yours, Wei Ying