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Two men walked side by side together down the long, winding road towards Gusu, their horsetail whisks glimmering in the early morning light. While the summer heat was not yet oppressive, they still had chosen to set out at dawn on the first leg of their long quest together, where word of mouth and vague gossip had told them that the Cloud Recesses had a man with the answers they sought.
“Zichen, are you sure that Gusu is where we should go?” Xiao Xingchen broke the silence between them, frowning slightly. “She claims no home and travels where she will. It is entirely possible that we are going the wrong way.”
Zichen nodded. “You may have not heard yet, but while Cangse-sanren herself is nomadic, her son has recently married into a Great Clan. If someone knows where she was most recently, it would be him.”
Xiao Xingchen’s brow unfurrowed slightly. “Ah, right, that was the marriage we heard of, back at the cultivation conference, was it not? That of the Lans’ second son?”
“Yes,” Zichen said, a faint wisp of amusement stirring his solemn face. “You disappointed many young maidens by so thoroughly defeating the other current eligible bachelors. But that is not the point here. The point is his chosen cultivation partner, Wei Wuxian, who has recently returned from his travels, would be the one who is most able to tell us where to go.”
Xiao Xingchen smiled. It had been a very pleasant surprise to discover upon his descent that not only did his shijie still live, but he had two shizi now as well. While her daughter was apparently still too young to leave her parents’ side, her son had been mentioned several times at the conference he had attended, mostly in the context of his inventions that were now being handled by the Lan family.
He was very interested in this new Compass of Ill Winds. Such a tool would be invaluable for his hopeful future students, helping them identify opportunities for experience while still being able to avoid danger when necessary. But even without the compasses, he still would have been interested in meeting him.
“I do wonder if he will be interested in meeting with me, after everything that happened with the other clans,” he said with a wistful laugh. It had been amusing, if slightly alarming, to suddenly have multiple clan leaders swarming around him, trying to ask what it would take for him to join their clan. He’d turned them all down, of course, but it had nearly turned into a debacle until he’d managed to escape back to the small contingent of cultivators from Baixue Temple.
He hadn’t been exactly sure what to expect in the jianghu, but becoming the talk of the conference was definitely something he hadn’t anticipated. He'd thought to meet many more people than he could ever find on his teacher's secluded mountain, but he was entirely new to the politics he'd found.
That was part of what Shizun so decisively rejected. She'd explained the basics of jianghu politics, gleaned from her trips off the mountain to find new children, to all of her students, but they were told more as a cautionary tale. These useless concerns were what preoccupied cultivators off the mountain, Shizun said whenever one of his shixiongdi expressed interest in the world off the mountain. Rather than focus on their own cultivation, they vied for power amongst themselves, clouding their thoughts and sabotaging both themselves and each other.
Even now, Xiao Xingchen did not think she was wrong. No matter how attractive they tried to make their offers, they all prioritized the bloodlines of their clans first. They'd wanted his presence as a trophy, but they would not have made any substantive changes based on his advice and experience. Young he might be, but he knew he had things to offer, and he did not want to be forced to prioritize blood over merit in his teachings.
"I do not believe he will behave as they did," Zichen replied, giving Xiao Xingchen a considering look. "His reputation, and that of his new husband, is of someone who does not care for politics. Beyond that, I cannot really say."
That was fair enough. It was better not to speculate about the potential responses of someone neither of them had met. Xiao Xingchen could admit, if only to himself, that he was concerned that Wei Wuxian had made the choice that he himself had refused to, joining a clan after spending his whole life before that as a rogue cultivator. Had he found something worthwhile in a clan?
"Wei Wuxian and Hanguang-jun, his new husband, are also said to continue to travel regularly rather than remain in the Cloud Recesses," Zichen added after a moment. "We may therefore find that they have already left by the time we get there. However, if so, the Lan may still be willing to tell us where they went."
"Hopefully so," Xiao Xingchen agreed. "As far as you know, my shijie and her family have always traveled?"
"Yes. Her husband was once a servant of the Yunmeng Jiang Clan, but he left the clan when he married her. Since then, they have remained nomadic and raised their family on the road."
Zichen remained continually patient with his questions, Xiao Xingchen thought gratefully. He'd known so little about what he was walking into when he came down the mountain, and to have met a man like Song Zichen so soon into his new life was beyond lucky for him.
Friendships were best built on shared ideals; the ones that lasted a lifetime could only be born from those who had the same character at heart. Shizun had doubted that he would find someone like that, but he was happy that in this one respect, she had been wrong.
They stopped in a small town around midday to ask for further directions to the Cloud Recesses, whose name made it rather difficult to guess where in Gusu it might be, and received the useful answer that it was near Biling Lake, but they would be best off asking for further directions in Caiyi.
To his pleasant surprise, when he asked if there were any small troubles that he and Zichen could attend to, the man they were speaking to smiled and shook his head. “Hanguang-jun came by just a xun ago, him and his husband. They made sure everything was well settled.”
“Have you met Hanguang-jun before, daozhang?” his wife asked, shifting the basket she held from one hip to the other. “If there’s one man worth meeting, it’s him. He’s different than the other cultivators around; there’s no problem too small for him.”
“And some of his clan-mates are starting to follow his example, from what I hear,” the man added. “Only a few, but that’s still an improvement. No one ever built a house in a day, so we’ll take what we can get.”
Xiao Xingchen smiled. “That is good to hear,” he said and turned to Zichen. “How far is Caiyi from here?”
Zichen frowned minutely in thought. “I am not sure,” he admitted. “Perhaps another day’s travel?”
“Less than that,” the woman interjected once more. “It’s three shichen on horseback. But I’m sure that you two are capable of covering that in half the time! Perhaps even less!”
Xiao Xingchen laughed and decided to not go too deep into the mechanics of sword flight. Not if they could apparently make it within the day anyway. They wouldn't even have to bother with flying -- if they left now, they would likely arrive in Caiyi not long after sunset. Hopefully they would be able to spend the night there and get directions to the Cloud Recesses in the morning.
Although the trip would be quicker by sword, Xiao Xingchen did prefer walking. There was so much to see, in this world off the mountain, and so many people to meet along the way. It seemed a shame to miss any of it by rushing.
After a brief meal, they started down the road to Caiyi. Xiao Xingchen asked Zichen what he knew of the Lan Clan, who had not been among those vying for his favor after his first appearance. So Zichen told him a little of what stood out to the rest of the jianghu about them, including the thousands of rules carved into their mountain and the ribbons every member of the clan wore on their foreheads.
They apparently cared deeply for propriety, and Xiao Xingchen, who had heard of his shijie's vibrant and exuberant nature, wondered if Cangse-sanren's son was anything like her.
Perhaps tomorrow he would find out.
They made good time on the road and wandered into Caiyi just as the sun was setting. Xiao Xingchen pointed out a restaurant advertising food he'd never tried before, and Zichen nodded agreeably, so the two of them went inside and found themselves a table. After a brief conversation with their waiter, who recommended some dishes suitable for a newcomer to Hunan cuisine, Xiao Xingchen sat back and let his gaze wander around the room, taking in all the people smiling and laughing and enjoying their meals.
His eyes stopped on a nearby corner, and he blinked before turning back to Zichen. "You said the Lan Clan wears white, did you not?" he asked.
"Patterned with blue clouds," Zichen confirmed.
That was what he'd thought. Then there were two Lans in the corner, whose robes, not like Xiao Xingchen's own plainer white clothes, had blue swirls on the shoulders. Both of them wore the robes, though only one of them wore the ribbon around his forehead that Zichen had mentioned. The one without a ribbon had a jar of wine at his elbow, and his chopsticks danced through the air as he spoke to his companion, who listened silently.
"Then perhaps, after our meal, we might ask the pair in the corner about the Cloud Recesses," Xiao Xingchen said, lifting his chin in their direction. "And inquire as to whether Wei Wuxian is there."
Zichen glanced over and nodded. “We may indeed.”
Their waiter returned shortly with their meals and extra tea, something that Xiao Xingchen greatly appreciated after his first bite unexpectedly burned far more than he’d been anticipating.
Zichen said nothing as he did his best to politely sip his tea and breath through the lingering sting, but his eyes were nevertheless amused.
“They don’t have spices as potent as this up on the mountain,” Xiao Xingchen explained sheepishly, wiping his mouth. “I was unprepared.”
“Of course,” Zichen said, showing no signs that the heat of their dinner bothered him at all. He kept calmly eating without hesitation or conversation, more focused on finishing quickly than anything else.
Xiao Xingchen sighed inwardly and returned to eating, taking warier bites after that first one, though it did seem to lessen in heat after a few minutes.
Clearly Hunan cuisine did not lack for flavor or heat. As he ate, he found himself going from somewhat intimidated by it, to enjoying the flavors that were heightened by the heat, then to the point where he was mildly disappointed when he’d finished his bowl.
He tidied up his and Zichen’s bowls and cups, placing them at the end of the table to make it easier for whoever had to collect their dishes when they passed by. He chanced another look at the two Lan men in the corner, noting that they also seemed to be wrapping up now. The one without a ribbon was holding his bottle of wine and shaking it at his companion with a mischievous grin on his face.
“If you would like to go speak with them, I can settle our bill,” Zichen said quietly, noticing where Xiao Xingchen’s attention had gone. “I will come find you when you are ready.”
Xiao Xingchen nodded and smiled at him, taking care to step around him on his way over. Zichen had told him that he didn’t need to be as concerned about touching him as others, that it didn’t bother him as much, but he still wanted to not give his friend any such discomfort if possible.
Judging by Zichen’s quiet smile before he turned away to go pay for their meals, he had noticed and appreciated it.
Xiao Xingchen approached the table calmly, noticing the way that both men paused as they sensed him approaching. They didn’t seem to be put off by him, but he got the sense that they had noticed him and Zichen a while ago and hadn’t yet decided what to do.
Well, then he would be the one to first approach them, he decided.
He came to a stop in front of their table and bowed politely. “Good evening, daozhang,” he said calmly. “This one is Xiao Xingchen. May I ask your names?”
"Oh, are you!" the one without a ribbon exclaimed. His eyes flicked up and down Xiao Xingchen, lingering slightly on his horsetail whisk and Shuanghua, before he grinned. The smile was genuine and engaging, and Xiao Xingchen found himself smiling back. "I've been hearing a lot about you, Xiao-daozhang. How are you liking the world off the mountain?"
They hadn't given their names, Xiao Xingchen couldn't help but notice, but it would feel rude to insist. Especially because the man had leapt up to grab two chairs from abandoned tables and drag them over to let Xiao Xingchen join him and his companion, who watched them with a blank face. Perhaps he would get another chance later in the conversation to get their names.
"It's different," he replied, sitting down, looking between the two Lans. "I certainly hadn't expected to gain as much notoriety as I apparently have, especially so soon."
The ribbonless Lan laughed. "You're new, interesting, and unaffiliated with any of the clans, which means you have a lot of...potential. But it sounds like that's not what you left the mountain for?"
"It's not, no," Xiao Xingchen agreed. Zichen joined them, looking questioningly at him as he sat down. "This is my friend, Song Zichen," Xiao Xingchen continued. "He and I hope to build a sect and take students based on merit, not blood."
"Admirable," the Lan with the ribbon murmured.
The Lan without the ribbon inclined his head in agreement. "But you've certainly got your work cut out for you," he said. "It's been centuries since the jianghu had proper sects, and the clans don't really like anything...unusual. Your journey is likely to be difficult."
"I know," Xiao Xingchen said, because he did. He'd never thought this would be an easy path. "But it is still work worth doing. There are so many people who could be incredible cultivators, if only they had the opportunity. I was lucky enough to be found by my master as a child, and I want to pass that luck to others."
Shizun wanted to focus entirely on cultivation and repudiate the mortal world, and Xiao Xingchen did truly respect her for it. Her clarity of purpose, and the power it gave her, was truly admirable. But so few people came to the mountain, and even as Xiao Xingchen recognized his own luck in being one of them, he found himself unsatisfied. Shizun made her choice, but he knew that there was more that he could be doing.
The ribbonless Lan nodded, smiling again. "There's a lot that's worthwhile outside of what the clans teach," he said. "So why are you looking for Wei Wuxian? He did end up joining a clan, you know."
Xiao Xingchen considered his answer carefully. “Forgive me if my answers seem insufficient, but in truth I most want to meet him because he is my shizi and the son of my shijie who descended the mountain before I was even born, let alone when I was taken up there. I have heard comments about him, ones that spoke well of his character and abilities,” he hastened to add when the quieter Lan’s eyebrows furrowed just slightly. “That, and apparently my shijie is apparently difficult to track down in her travels, but since my shizi has joined a clan, he is perhaps a little easier to reach out to.”
The brighter Lan laughed. “Yeah, that makes sense. Cangse-sanren is a difficult woman to find, especially now that her children are mostly grown and can keep up with her, wouldn’t you agree?” he asked cryptically, turning to his companion, who seemed to ignore him before looking back to Xiao Xingchen with a playful smile hooked at the corner of his mouth. “So you’re seeking your martial family living down here in the jianghu since you’ve left the mountain, then? I’m sure Wei Wuxian would be intrigued by the sudden appearance of a shishu if he’s heard of your descent now.”
Xiao Xingchen nodded hesitantly, feeling as though there was some other level of conversation going on between them that he was unaware of the specifics. “I suppose you could put it that way,” he said. “It is not my only goal, but it is one I am hopeful will bear fruit.”
He glanced over at Zichen as he spoke, feeling slightly turned around by the conversation. For some reason this made the other man’s smile grow wider.
“Pardon me,” he said, shaking his head lightly. “We have taken up much of your time when really we only came to ask one thing. Do you know if Wei Wuxian is still at the Cloud Recesses right now, or has he set out again?”
“Yes, please do excuse us, but the hour is growing late,” Zichen added, making to rise to his feet. “We are happy to make our call in the morning, if it has already grown too late to meet with him tonight.”
The other man’s eyes widened slightly and he sat up. “Mm, it’s not that late yet, is it, Lan Zhan?” he asked his companion, quickly receiving a positive answer. “If you’d like to meet with him, we can take you up to the Cloud Recesses and you can stay overnight. I’m sure he’d be delighted to meet the pair of you.”
Xiao Xingchen smiled in relief. “Many thanks, daozhang,” he said, bowing slightly in his seat. “We will graciously accept your kindness.”
“Oh, there’s no need for that,” the man said with a wave of his hand. “Trust me, I’m sure he’ll be very happy to meet you regardless, and I think from what you’ve said, the two of you could have some very interesting, vaguely heretical conversations to explore.”
"I look forward to it!" Xiao Xingchen replied, laughing a little. From what he'd seen so far, the clans had a pretty narrow view of acceptable methods of cultivation. It was another reason he'd rather found his own sect.
The quieter Lan went over to pay while the friendlier one led them outside. Night had fallen as they'd eaten and talked, but the streets around the restaurant remained well-lit and bustling. Xiao Xingchen thought he might like to come back here and explore a little once his task at the Cloud Recesses was finished.
"The Cloud Recesses does have a curfew of hai shi," their new friend told them once his companion returned, "so we should fly if we're going to make it in time. Is that all right with you?"
"Lead the way," Xiao Xingchen said, smiling and inclining his head.
The two Lans took them to just outside the town, where they all mounted their swords and took off. The Lans, their white robes shining helpfully like a beacon under the starlight accompanied by red and blue sword glares, flew towards a dark mass in the distance. Xiao Xingchen had noticed the mountain when they'd arrived in Caiyi and realized now that it did seem a likely place for a cultivation clan to settle.
Partway through the flight, Zichen weaved in close to him. "What were their names?" he asked, loud enough for Xiao Xingchen to hear but too soft for their companions. "I only caught a Lan Zhan. It sounds familiar, but I can't place it."
"They didn't actually say," Xiao Xingchen had to respond. He'd meant to ask again, but the conversation had moved rather too quickly for him to find a good place to interject. He would have to ask again before they bade farewell. There was also something else strange about the conversation, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
Most of the mountain stood dark, but as they approached, a faint light appeared. It grew closer and closer until Xiao Xingchen could see steps carved into the mountain and a gate at the end of them. The four of them alighted on the landing in front of the gate, where two guards standing on either side of the entrance straightened as they did.
"Hello, Lan Lingyun, Lan Junfeng," the friendly Lan said cheerfully. "Lan Zhan and I brought guests. These are Xiao Xingchen and Song Zichen. Could one of you go make arrangements for a guest house for them?"
One of the guards nodded and walked off, while the other raised his eyebrows. "Xiao Xingchen?" he asked, peering at him. "Is that the one who recently came down from Baoshan-sanren's mountain? Like your mother, Master Wei?"
Xiao Xingchen's own eyebrows flew up, and he turned to look at the Lan they'd been speaking to this whole night. He was now pouting at the gate guard, complaining, "You spoiled the game!"
"Master Wei?" Xiao Xingchen repeated.
The friendly Lan -- Wei Wuxian? -- turned to face them, his eyes gleaming with laughter. "You can hardly blame me for wanting to know more about people asking after me," he said around his grin. And that was right -- Xiao Xingchen hadn't told them he was looking for Wei Wuxian, but they must have overheard his earlier conversation with Zichen. "And if you can't handle me, you'll never be able to handle my mother."
His companion -- most likely his husband, Lan Wangji -- nodded sagely in agreement. Xiao Xingchen spluttered for a second before regaining his composure. “I-I suppose it makes sense to hold off sharing your name immediately,” he agreed, though he was still a little wrong-footed by the whole adventure. “But then how long would you have waited otherwise?”
“Oh, tomorrow, probably,” Wei Wuxian said with a careless wave of his hand. “Maybe I would have had Lan Zhan bring you two over to the jingshi and introduce myself then. But you know now, so I can properly introduce myself, I suppose.”
He drew himself up and dipped into an elegant bow, his ponytail falling over one shoulder. “It is a pleasure to greet my shishu at last. I am Wei Ying, courtesy name Wuxian, Cangse-sanren’s son and husband to the Second Young Master of Lan. It is my pleasure to welcome you to the Cloud Recesses.”
As Xiao Xingchen and Zichen bowed again in response to a proper greeting, Lan Wangji joined them as well with his own quiet introduction. “If there is something I can assist you with during your stay, you need only ask,” he added as he straightened up.
“Thank you, I hope that won’t be necessary,” Xiao Xingchen said, feeling somewhat more at ease now that their apparent game had been concluded. “Your kindness in offering us hospitality is already greatly appreciated.”
“Indeed,” Zichen added quietly, looking around with vague interest at the carved stairs. “I presume that any further discussions would still be better served waiting for morning?”
Wei Wuxian laughed. “Yeah, that would probably be for the best. It is getting close to curfew, and the head of discipline can be strict about that.”
“That is no trouble,” Xiao Xingchen said. “We are happy to abide by your rules in this matter. We can speak more on the morrow.”
“And, since you’re specifically here to see me now, you shouldn’t be given any trouble by the other clans for favoring Gusu Lan with your presence over theirs,” Wei Wuxian added with a cheeky grin. “The gossip in Caiyi alone will grant you some clemency there.”
Xiao Xingchen found himself laughing. "It's nice that gossip can work for me as well as against me," he said, shaking his head a little.
The other Lan guard returned then, holding a lantern. "Arrangements have been made, Hanguang-jun, Master Wei," he said. "You can take your guests to the meishi."
"Come on, then," Wei Wuxian said, beckoning them through the gates and taking the lantern from the guard, as well as a token he handed to Xiao Xingchen. "But Lan Zhan should lead the way. I don't think I've been to the meishi yet."
Lan Wangji stepped forward to walk beside him, and Xiao Xingchen and Zichen followed them both deeper into the Cloud Recesses. The lantern's light illuminated their path but shrouded the landscape beyond it in deeper darkness, and Xiao Xingchen looked forward to seeing what it looked like in daylight.
Wei Wuxian and his husband were a curious pair. Xiao Xingchen observed Wei Wuxian leaning close to Lan Wangji as they walked, a smile carving shadows on his face even as his lips moved in a voice too quiet for Xiao Xingchen to easily hear. And Lan Wangji angled his head to partly face him and replied to whatever he'd said with a nod. It was strange to think that the two of them were married. He wouldn't have guessed that, before he'd been told, and yet it made sense now that he knew. They seemed to complement each other, and they were very comfortable together.
He thought he better understood now why Wei Wuxian had joined a clan after a lifetime of living independently. From their conversation in the restaurant, Xiao Xingchen could tell that he remained cognizant of their flaws. He was surely skilled enough that, like Xiao Xingchen himself, almost any clan would have been happy to accept him into their ranks had he wished that.
But looking at them now...Wei Wuxian had clearly chosen the person, not the clan. He didn't seem to mind the clan, and Xiao Xingchen would like to speak to him more about that at some point, but the clan was not his priority.
"This is the meishi." Lan Wangji's voice shook Xiao Xingchen from his thoughts. He and Zichen stopped as their hosts did, and Wei Wuxian handed the lantern to them. Xiao Xingchen lifted it higher to see a simple yet elegant guest house surrounded by plum trees.
"The Lans all get up at mao shi, so Lan Zhan will likely be the one to meet you in the morning and show you where to get breakfast," Wei Wuxian told them. He grinned again as he added, "I may or may not be awake by then, but you shouldn't bet on seeing me before mid-morning."
Xiao Xingchen raised his eyebrows in curiosity, but he didn’t really expect any answers at the moment. With another bow, they made their farewells for the evening and Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji departed for another part of the Cloud Recesses, quickly disappearing into the night.
He wasn’t quite sure what to expect from a guest house in a Great Clan; he was well aware both that they held themselves and were held above the others, but also that Gusu Lan in particular practiced a more austere form of living, more in line with temple traditions like what he had seen in Baixue Temple when he and Zichen stayed there. Fortunately, the small house seemed to lean more towards the continued austere traditions, with a stand to rest their swords in, a single partition, a low table with a simple incense burner on it and two narrow beds already laid out for them.
Zichen took the lantern from him so Xiao Xingchen could remove his boots before stepping into the small room, immediately taking it back once he was done so as to return the favor. “Your shizi is very… unusual,” Zichen said as he neatly lined up his boots next to each other at the entrance to the meishi.
“He is, isn’t he?” Xiao Xingchen said with a smile. “I wasn’t expecting someone quite like that. But then I suppose it makes sense from what I’ve heard of my shijie. He seems to have inherited her energy and spirit, at least.”
Zichen hummed thoughtfully, taking the lantern to set it down on the low table. “He may have suspected who we were before you went to speak with him,” he said after a moment. “There were a few times where I noticed them glancing our way.”
Xiao Xingchen snorted. “I suppose I can’t be too surprised,” he said, shaking his head. “He is more in tune with the rules of the jianghu than I am. Perhaps it was inevitable that he would know what information to listen to and what to discard.”
“Indeed,” Zichen agreed. He still sounded a little aggrieved at the situation, but Xiao Xingchen suspected that some rest and a more traditional meeting in the morning would put him at ease again. There was certainly no sense in pursuing the topic any further tonight.
After they finished preparing themselves for bed, he leaned over and extinguished the lantern, settling down on the comfortably firm bed. He couldn’t hear Zichen moving around, so he assumed that for once, the bed was not too soft for him.
The Cloud Recesses was pleasantly quiet, with only the soft sound of the night breeze gently drifting through the nearby plum trees. It reminded him a little of his old home, up on the secret mountain, and made him smile.
“Good night, Zichen,” he said into the darkness. “Please wake me up if I have not risen by the time Lan Wangji comes to collect us.”
“I will,” Zichen promised, already sounding half asleep. “Good night.”
--
Wei Wuxian had mentioned that the clan rose at mao shi, and Shizun habitually woke early as well, so Xiao Xingchen was able to blink himself awake when dawn was just beginning to brighten the room. When he glanced to the side, he saw Zichen already in the midst of his morning ablutions, so Xiao Xingchen swung his legs out of bed and followed suit.
Neither of them strongly felt the need to converse as they shook off the remnants of sleep, so the chirping of birds, the whistle of wind passing through branches, and the rustle of cloth and gentle splashes of their wash-water were the only sounds that accompanied them as they got ready for the day. Soon, however, their quiet was interrupted by a soft knock on the door.
Xiao Xingchen slid it open to see Lan Wangji, this time unaccompanied by Wei Wuxian. "Good morning," he said. "If you are ready, I can show you to the dining hall for breakfast."
"Good morning," Xiao Xingchen replied, as Zichen came up behind him to incline his head in silent greeting. "I think we're ready."
The two of them joined Lan Wangji as he led them down misty paths. Now that Xiao Xingchen could see them, he was able to appreciate the landscape and its features. The meishi and the plum trees that surrounded it soon disappeared behind them, but other buildings likewise blended in with trees, rocks both carved and not, and screens of bamboo. The whole area seemed designed as a large garden.
"You may eat in the dining hall or take a tray back to the meishi," Lan Wangji told them as they walked. "But if you choose to eat with the clan, speaking is not permitted during the meal. If you take a tray, return it to the dining hall when you are finished."
Xiao Xingchen and Zichen both nodded. The denizens of Baixue Temple similarly refrained from speaking while eating. Xiao Xingchen was curious about the thousands of rules Zichen had mentioned to him. If many of them were derived from tenets of the monastic life of the Lan's founder, perhaps Zichen would be comfortable here.
"When do you think we might see Wei Wuxian?" Xiao Xingchen asked. It hadn't sounded like he would join them for breakfast this early. Though that seemed a little strange, on its own -- was he not part of the clan now? Did he not have to follow its rules?
Lan Wangji paused for a moment, but then he said, "Wei Ying often prefers to sleep in, but he is looking forward to speaking to you. I do not believe he will keep you waiting long."
Xiao Xingchen’s confusion deepened again, though he couldn’t exactly ask why in public. Perhaps he could ask his shizi later in private? It seemed to be something that didn’t concern his husband, but without understanding why, it was difficult for Xiao Xingchen to share that lack of concern.
“Xingchen, would you prefer to eat at the meishi?” Zichen asked him, his eyebrows vaguely furrowed. He must have noticed Xiao Xingchen’s worries.
Xiao Xingchen quickly attempted to wipe away any signs of concern from his own face, putting a smile up instead. “Eating here is fine. I’m sure that Lan Wangji will be happy to let us know when Wei Wuxian is ready for guests?”
Lan Wangji nodded, face impassive as always. “We will be happy to see you again when Wei Ying is awake,” he said calmly.
He walked ahead of them into the hall and back into the kitchens out of sight once Xiao Xingchen and Zichen had gotten into the line. The entire hall was silent aside from the occasional soft thump of a bowl or a cup on the long tables. Most of them were filled with cultivators in matching white robes and forehead ribbons; he could tell the difference between outer clan and family members depending on who bore the blue swirls.
All of them appeared to be men, which was not much of an oddity to him when he’d seen that at Baixue Temple as well. It seemed that Gusu Lan had carried many temple traditions with them into clanhood, and it certainly made for an interesting contrast between his expectations and what he saw before his eyes.
It was not a perfect mix, but he could see many mixed groups amongst the men already seated, so at least they did not force family and outer clan to stay divided.
He wanted to share his observations with Zichen, ask him his thoughts again on both positives and negatives that he had noticed, but the silence of the hall was such that he would have felt uncomfortable even coughing and disturbing the quiet peace of the morning meal.
He tucked away several of those curious thoughts into his mind as they walked down the line, accepting bowls of plain congee, uncooked vegetables, and medicinal soup, as well as a shared pot of strong herbal tea. Once they were sufficiently laden down, they went to sit at one of the unoccupied tables near the corner, enjoying the fact that aside from a few curious glances, no one else came over to bother them.
The meal reminded him much of both his home and Baixue Temple, with the only significant difference being their particular blend of tea, a strong, dark one that he quite enjoyed. When they were finished, they followed a few of the other cultivators with their trays and dishes to place them neatly on rolling carts to be taken back and cleaned before heading outside.
As he squinted in the morning sunlight, trying to mark where the meishi was from their current location, a man in undyed white robes with a plain ribbon came over to them. “Good morning, Xiao Xingchen-daozhang, Song Zichen-daozhang,” he said with a warm smile. “This humble one is Li Xiaolong. Hanguang-jun has asked that I come take you whoever you would like to go within the Cloud Recesses while you await Master Wei’s attention. Is there some place of interest that I could guide you?”
Xiao Xingchen shared a glance with Zichen, then replied, "I'm afraid I'm not familiar with the Cloud Recesses. Is there anywhere in particular you think guests should see?"
Li Xiaolong tapped his fingers against his lips. "It depends on what interests you. There are a number of garden and meditation areas open to guests if you would like to cultivate. Our Library Pavilion is respected throughout the jianghu. You might also want to see the Wall of Discipline, where all the rules of the clan are carved into the base of the mountain."
He would certainly like to explore the Library Pavilion at some point, but -- "I admit I'm curious about the Wall of Discipline," he told Zichen. "Would you want to see that?"
Zichen nodded. "I'm familiar with some of the more famous rules, but I wonder about the rest," he said. He then turned to Li Xiaolong. "Are there really three thousand?"
"More than that now," Li Xiaolong replied with a wry smile. "I'm afraid I'd have to look up how many exactly. But I can certainly take you there for now."
The two of them followed their guide through the winding paths and back out of the front gate. Li Xiaolong really did mean the base of the mountain, Xiao Xingchen realized as they started down the curving steps. Perhaps he would have even been able to see it last night, had it been light enough when they'd approached the mountain.
Finally they reached the base, where a sheer rock face was carved with two many characters to count, rising up so high he would have to fly to read the ones at the top. They were all written in seal script, which thankfully Xiao Xingchen had been taught, and he leaned forward to read one of them. Do not smile foolishly. He guessed it was a rule about emotional regulation, but the specificity made him laugh with what he knew was his own foolish smile.
He and Zichen began looking over even more of them, many of which were likewise very specific. It sounded like the clan continued to add new ones, so he moved to the far left to see rules that may well have been inspired by singular situations. Returning back to the earliest rules, he noticed that they also tended to codify what would be considered unspoken expectations in other places.
Xiao Xingchen continued examining the rules, now looking to see whether he could find outright duplication, when a cheerful voice behind him called, "Shishu!"
He turned to see Wei Wuxian approaching, Lan Wangji at his side. The two of them nodded at Li Xiaolong, who returned the gesture and started back up the stairs, before they too reached the Wall. "Good morning, Shizi," Xiao Xingchen said, smiling.
“Good morning!” Wei Wuxian called back, grinning at them. “Enjoying all of the many rules on the wall? I think three of those were made after I joined.”
“Is that so?” Xiao Xingchen asked, lifting his eyebrows. “Did you see what sort of monumental occasions led to new rules being created, then?”
Lan Wangji dipped his head slightly as Wei Wuxian started laughing. “I mean one of them is sort of my fault, but only in the sense that the Cloud Recesses didn’t have a donkey around before then,” he said, coming over to stand next to Xiao Xingchen so he could point up at a rule that said, “Biting in retaliation is forbidden.”
“You see, some of the young masters who were used to all those serene Gusu Lan horses had no idea what to do with a territorial, cranky, pregnant donkey,” he explained, slinging an arm around Xiao Xingchen’s shoulders familiarly. “A few of the young disciples who are good with horses were tasked to help take care of her, but one of them brought along a friend who was… less good with cantankerous animals.”
“Oh dear,” Xiao Xingchen said, looking back up at the rule with a new sense of what chaos had erupted. “I take it then that the disciple in question attempted to bite your donkey?”
Wei Wuxian snorted. “From what I heard, he did succeed and got kicked for his troubles. In the end, the elders presiding over the matter decided that Lychee hadn’t done anything beyond what could be expected of a donkey in her situation and another rule went onto the wall.”
Xiao Xingchen couldn’t help but share in Wei Wuxian’s laughter at the story; it certainly made for a memorable reason for such a specific rule to be placed on the wall.
“She’s doing fine, by the way,” Wei Wuxian added with a fond smile. “Happily eating all of the grass in her own private meadow and being the most spoiled donkey you could imagine. If you have some time, I’ll take you to meet her. She was my mother’s donkey up until earlier this year, she’s been around forever, and I swear she gets crankier with each passing year.”
Xiao Xingchen smiled. “That would be nice, if we should have the time. But that does remind me that we did have something we wanted to ask you about…” he said, trailing off slightly.
Fortunately, Zichen saw where he was unsure about continuing and stepped in. “Master Wei, we don’t mean to intrude upon your hospitality for too long, but we were hoping you could assist us in another matter.”
Wei Wuxian glanced back at his husband with a knowing smile. “Are you hoping I’ll know where my mother ran off to most recently?”
"Indeed," Xiao Xingchen agreed.
Wei Wuxian nodded. "I know she was heading to the far north of Qinghe territory, but she should only be about halfway to Lanling at this point. I did, however, take the liberty of sending her a message, and I'm sure she won't mind delaying her trip to come back here and meet you. Unless you're in a hurry to leave?"
Echoing Zichen's words, Xiao Xingchen said, "We don't want to intrude..."
"Don't be so polite!" Wei Wuxian told them, putting his hands on his hips. "If you don't want to stick around, that's one thing, and I won't be offended. But are you not my shishu? No matter how unfilial my mother calls me, I hope I know better than that." He winked.
Xiao Xingchen laughed again. "Then I'll try not to get you in worse trouble with your mother," he replied. He glanced at Zichen again, who nodded.
With that settled, Wei Wuxian's hands dropped from his waist as he beamed. Then, after a moment, he tilted his head at the Wall of Discipline and asked, "Do you need more time here, or would you like to go back up to the residence?"
"We can leave." Smiling a little, Xiao Xingchen shook his head. "It's certainly interesting, and I'll do my best to follow these rules while I'm here, but I would like to talk to you." As they all started up the stairs again, he hesitated slightly, then added, "Though speaking of the rules, I confess I'm a little curious as to why you were not expected to also rise at mao shi." His eyes went up again to Wei Wuxian's empty forehead. "Or wear the ribbon?"
Wei Wuxian first looked at his husband, blank and silent at his side, before turning back to Xiao Xingchen with another grin. "The head of discipline likes me," he said conspiratorially. "I shamelessly take advantage of his favoritism."
It had the air of a joke, but Xiao Xingchen didn't understand it well enough, so he couldn't help glancing again at Lan Wangji. In turn, Lan Wangji caught the glance, and this time he told them, "There is still room for individuality within the rules. Many of them, as with the rule about waking at mao shi, are meant to instill habits of personal discipline. Wei Ying has his own habits that are not contrary to the spirit of the rules, even if they do not match the letter."
"What a generous interpretation," Wei Wuxian cooed, wrapping both arms around one of Lan Wangji's. His face heating a little, Xiao Xingchen looked away. He was suddenly reminded that they would have only been married for a few months at this point.
Fortunately, the blush of romance unfolding in front of him only lasted a moment. Lan Wangji cleared his throat and indicated that they were returning to the Cloud Recesses.
By the time they made it back up, many of the disciples had scattered to their regular daily duties. Xiao Xingchen saw a few groups walking to one location or another, but on the whole, the place seemed relatively empty compared to breakfast earlier.
“Now is the time of day for meditation and contemplation,” Lan Wangji explained as he led them along. “I presume that your temple follows similar patterns, Song-daozhang?”
“Yes,” Zichen said, smiling faintly. “Baixue Temple spends its mornings quietly as well. There is a set of waterfalls nearby that lend themselves well to focused meditation.”
“It sounds beautiful,” Wei Wuxian complimented, stopping momentarily to wave at two disciples carrying scrolls. Despite their hands being full, they still took the time to smile at his shizi. “Maybe the next time Lan Zhan and I are over there, we’ll have to stop by and visit as well.”
“I will likely not be there, but I am sure you will be welcome nonetheless,” Zichen demurred. “Baixue Temple is a welcoming and kind place.”
Xiao Xingchen smiled fondly. Baixue Temple indeed had been very kind to him, but the best of all of them had chosen to leave the temple behind to come start a life with him.
He could imagine no better person than Zichen to share a dream with.
At first he thought they were going back to the meishi, but as they walked along, Xiao Xingchen noticed that the buildings around them didn’t look like the simple guesthouses but had more unique features to them and were more widely spread out or pressed together. Some of them had people in them despite Lan Wangji’s assurance of the time; there was an old man sitting on a bench outside a house with his face turned to the sun, a young boy painstakingly tuning a qin, his brow furrowed in concentration, a man with the door to his house thrown open wide to the fresh air while he ground ink at a table moved close to the door.
It took him a moment longer to realize the thing that they all had in common; they were all wearing the same blue swirls as Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian.
Ah, his shizi had brought them into the family estate, likely going back to his house or to visit the aforementioned donkey. Either one seemed like a pleasant way to spend a shichen.
It turned out to be the house. The building was set farther from the main path than other houses he'd seen, surrounded by trees and bushes that seemed to insulate it from the rest of the estate. It gave off an air of quiet and tranquility, and Xiao Xingchen found himself smiling as he exchanged his boots for guest slippers and moved to the table where Wei Wuxian was already settling.
Lan Wangji moved around in the background, apparently making tea, while Wei Wuxian folded his arms against the table. "Well, Shishu, I've made you wait long enough," he said once Xiao Xingchen and Zichen joined him. "What would you like to know?"
Xiao Xingchen considered that. He wanted to meet her, the shijie who'd left before he'd even met their master but who had still made her mark both on the mountain and off it. He wanted to ask why she'd left, and if she'd gotten what she wanted out of it. But he didn't think even her son could answer for her, so what he most wanted to know...
"What is her life like?" he asked. She roamed the jianghu with only her own family, eschewing the clans yet never attempting to build the kind of sect that was Xiao Xingchen's own dream. He'd have to wait to understand the why of this as well, but he'd still like to know the what. "What was yours?"
Another smile, already so familiar on his newfound shizi's face, pulled Wei Wuxian's lips up. As Lan Wangji brought all four of them tea and sat down beside his husband, Wei Wuxian replied, "She's free. She goes where she wants, when she wants, and she's too good at what she does for many to deny her."
Xiao Xingchen took up his tea and took a sip, listening as his shizi explained a lifestyle utterly foreign to him. It wasn't what he wanted for himself...but he could see the appeal.
--
Cangse-shijie took several days to come to the Cloud Recesses, but Xiao Xingchen did not regret the time he spent with Wei Wuxian and his husband. The pair of them were very accommodating, pointing out both the Library Pavilion, where Xiao Xingchen had already spent an afternoon and likely would again when the opportunity arose, and the Cold Pool that facilitated cultivation. Wei Wuxian brought out several of his own inventions and explained how they worked, even gifting a compass and several spirit attraction flags to both Xiao Xingchen and Zichen. He even got to meet, and almost be kicked by, the inestimable pregnant donkey Lychee.
All in all, it was an exemplary experience, and while his experiences of the clan at large still left him firm in his convictions to start a sect with focus solely on merits instead, it did leave him with the feeling that he might not be as completely at odds with the rest of the jianghu as he feared. Gusu Lan might have fallen into the same trap as the other clans, but at least Hanguang-jun proved they had not entirely lost their sense of duty to the world around them. The thousands of rules marked upon their wall only served to show that for all the flaws of humanity, they still strived to follow the guidance of their ancestors and not forget their teachings so soon.
Perhaps if more clans could follow in their steps as opposed to some of the others he’d met, the jianghu wouldn’t seem as dismal and hopeless to even his shizun. It was easy enough to lose sight of the little lights glimmering below when up too high above the clouds.
He still had yet to find a single reason to regret descending the mountain. There were simply too many good things below to ever be able to return even if the doors opened to him once more.
Like his shijie and her family. He would have never gotten to meet any of them if he had not ventured down. And in fairness, while he had only met his shizi officially so far, he already knew that the rest of their family would be equally delightful.
Perhaps that anticipation had spurred her on faster too. He and Zichen were sharing a private lunch in the meishi when Lan Wangji came by unexpectedly.
“I am sorry to interrupt your meal, but Wei Ying requested that I inform you that he is going down to Caiyi to meet his family,” he said from the doorway, hands tucked into his sleeves. “You will have time to finish eating before then. There is no need to rush.”
Despite his words, Xiao Xingchen couldn’t avoid the knot of anticipation growing in his chest as he ate quickly, not wanting to delay any longer than he had to. Zichen gave him more than a few looks over their meal, mostly amused and perhaps a little concerned.
He couldn’t deny that now that she was almost here, suddenly he wasn’t quite sure what Cangse-shijie would think of meeting another from the mountain. She had left so long ago, how often did she even think of that distant mountain with its quiet halls and tall pines that blocked the cold winds?
A large part of him knew that he was being silly, that she had turned around quickly from her journey to come to meet him and that alone said that she was also excited about this meeting. But it was hard to banish his nerves entirely.
“Xingchen,” Zichen’s calm voice cut through the lingering thoughts as neatly as a sword through the air. “It will be fine. Your shizi will be there. I will be there. There is no reason to fret.”
He managed to finish his meal despite his nerves. Lan Wangji wandered off, likely to go meet his in-laws, but Zichen stayed and made tea that Xiao Xingchen sipped as he tried to calm down.
He heard his shijie before he saw her, and the nerves that had nearly dissipated came back. She was loud -- louder than he understood she should be in the Cloud Recesses -- but at first he couldn't process anything except the sound of her voice. Then she came into view with the rest of her family.
His eyes went straight to her, as if there was something magnetic about her presence. Then he noticed how well she otherwise blended in with her son and son-in-law, because she too wore white. This, though, was not the cloud-edged white of the Lan Clan, but the simple white robes that Xiao Xingchen himself wore. That their shizun wore, and all the rest of her students with her. Shijie's husband wore black, and the girl a few years younger than Xiao Xingchen himself -- likely her daughter -- wore green, but at first glance, Shijie was the most familiar thing he'd seen since he'd descended the mountain.
The rest of his nerves went away entirely, and he came forward to meet her, Zichen at his side.
"Shidi!" she called, walking ahead with a hand outstretched, her face not quite smiling but still open and happy. "I heard someone else came down the mountain, but it's still a little hard to believe, even with you here. I never thought I'd be able to introduce my husband and children to anyone from my side of the family."
He stopped as he reached her and bowed in greeting. Her side of the family -- it was close enough, wasn't it? He thought he might like that. "Shijie," he replied, as the rest of her family caught up and spread out behind her. "I'm glad to finally meet you."
Now she smiled, broad and bright. "Come on," she said, even as one hand reached up to rest on her husband's shoulder and the other on her son's. "We have a lot to catch up on, don't we?"
He nodded, glancing back at Zichen to beckon him forward. He had a connection to his past, a plan for his future, and the best of people at his side.
This was truly something to build on, even as he'd left almost everything he'd known behind. Fate had truly treated him well.