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In all of Lan Sizhui's life, he's never known his A-Die to have a wife or lover of any sort. Lan Jingyi is trying to rope both him and Jin Ling into trying to change that.
"Come onnn Lannn Sizhuiii. Don't you want to see your A-Die happy?"
"He is happy."
Jin Ling made a weird face at him, "Hanguang-jun is happy?? He's as stoney as the wall of rules!"
Lan Sizhui simply sighs at the remark while Lan Jingyi opens his mouth again.
"Exactly! Jin Ling is right!-"
"Of course I'm right."
"-Wouldn't Hanguang-Jun be much happier if he had someone to be with all the time?" He pauses for a moment, continuing with a much softer tone, "He... He seems kind of lonely."
Lan Sizhui has noticed how his A-Die seemed to always be playing Wangji searching for something or someone any chance he could. It was like a part of his A-Die was missing and no matter how hard he tried to find it it was always just out of his reach.
Finally, after much thought, Lan Sizhui relented to his friend's demands, "Alright."
Sizhui was a bit reluctant to agree but he wanted his A-Die to be happy and feel less alone.
-----
After much debate on who they should try to set up with Hanguang-jun, the three teenagers settled on a kind woman from Caiyi town, Hua Lianfu.
Getting Hanguang-jun to Caiyi town and to meet her was simple enough. Lan Sizhui and Lan Jingyi lured Hanguang-jun with pleas for wanting to acquire new tassels. Tassels that Hua Lainfu sold.
They finally entered the shop a few hours after planning and Lan Jingyi was quick to start talking.
"Hanguang-jun, I've heard that Hua Lainfu's shop has the best silk around! Would you ask her how it's woven for me?" Lan Jingyi put on a shy face to help sell his act.
Lan Wangji gave a slight nod and brought the juniors along with him.
"Excuse me, a disciple of mine would like to inquire how you weave your silk."
The woman set aside a bolt of fabric and quickly but thoroughly explained the process of the complex weaves. The explanation was quickly wound down, "Any more questions I can help you with?"
"No, thank you." Was all that Lan Wangji responded with before turning away and telling the juniors to hurry as Jiang Cheng would be at the cloud recesses soon to get Jin Ling.
The juniors begrudgingly complied. Despite the lack of personal conversation between the two adults they were still determined to get them together.
-----
Weeks had passed and there was still no progress with their plans. They were certain that Hanguang-jun was getting a bit suspicious at how often they were trying to drag him to Caiyi town to go to Hua Lainfu's shop. They managed to take him again today.
Hua Lianfu bowed as they walked in. "Ah, Hanguang-jun, welcome in once again."
Lan Wangji simply nodded and returned the bow.
As they all walked around the shop Lan Jingyi prattled on about how beautiful and kind Hua Lianfu was to Lan Wangji.
"Hanguang-jun! Wouldn't Hua Lianfu make a lovely wife for you? You two look good together!"
Lan Wangji's eyes hardened and his mouth pressed into a thin line. "Enough. We are leaving now."
The journey back to the cloud recesses were charged with tension and eerily quiet.
When they arrived they were ready to walk as fast as the rules allowed them away from the storm that was Hanguang-jun's mood. But before they could do so, the juniors were told to follow Hanguang-jun further into the more private areas of the cloud recesses. The Jingshi felt incredibly uncomfortable to sit in while Hanguang-jun was sitting across from them at the low table.
"What were your intentions with these trips into Caiyi town recently? Have you been trying to set me up with Hua Lianfu?" Lan Wangji's voice held no room for excuses and certainly sounded more like facts than questions.
Jin Ling sputtered over his words "Ah... Umm... Ermm.."
Lan Jingyi looked like he was about to start crying so Lan Sizhui took the lead.
"A-Die we didn't mean our words or actions to be upsetting. We just... We just wanted you to be happy." Lan Sizhui took a steadying breath, his eyes downcast, "You always seem so lonely."
Lan Wangji's demeanor softened with his words. He quietly sighed. "Please refrain from trying anything like this again. Lan Jingyi, Jin Ling, you are dismissed." The two named juniors gave one last look of guilt towards Lan Sizhui before shuffling out of the Jingshi.
"A-Yuan, you know that Lans only love once. The only person I will ever love like that is your A-Niang."
Lan Sizhui looked a little sheepish in his surprise that Lan Wangji was mentioning his A-Niang. No one ever talked about his mother, considering that no one knew who it was. He always assumed just like everyone else that Lan Sizhui was adopted because Lan Wangji had never married. Did this mean that his A-Die was truly his father in blood when he thought that he was in everything but that. The questions and answers never bubbled to the surface as they clung to his throat.
A knock at the door ended their conversation.
-----
It was a few days later that they had seen Jin Ling again. On a night hunt at Mo Manner, yelling at a man wearing a mask and if that wasn't enough to hide his face, it was obvious that he also had powder caked on his face under it. The voice paired with the man seemed oddly high and squeaky in some places like he was trying to hide that too.
Without much more fuss they all parted ways again, only to find each other once more fighting against a statue of all things!
A shrill note from a flute nearby made all of the disciples startle but easily continue on fighting. The flute seemed to shriek more than play as air passed through it. It continued even still as the fabled and Deadly Ghost General appeared. (Maybe it had beef with the statue???)
The Ghost General easily dispatched the statue and seemed to await more orders as the shrieking flute came to a halt. The man began to play once more, a lovely melody played through the crude flute for a moment before Hanguang-jun grabbed the man's arm. Disciples surrounded the General and so the man played the flute despite the bruising grip on his wrist. The Ghost General fled.
Many things happened quickly after that. The man revealed his name as Mo Xuanyu, one of Jin Ling's uncles. Jiang Cheng hit him with Zidian, and now Hanguang-jun was taking him back to the cloud recesses on his donkey, little apple.
"Lan Zhan!! Lan-er gege!!" With a mischievous smile he removed his mask and threw it at Hanguang-jun's head. The man's face was indeed caked with powders and makeup making him look like some clown lunatic. A lunatic with a sharp jawline, pouty lips and beautiful silver eyes, but a lunatic nonetheless. Lan Wangji just caught it instead and turned to the man awaiting his next words.
The man atop the donkey leaned down a bit and grinned wider, "Husband, did you miss me?"
Though Lan Wangji's ears flushed a pretty red he quickly replied with a nod, "En. Missed Wei Ying."
The juniors spluttered and gasped while Wei Wuxian laughed.