Chapter 135 One Hundred and Thirty-Five

Chapter Summary: Wen Ning had just woken up, and his reactions were a beat slow. He was stunned when he saw Wei Wuxian vomit blood...

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Wen Ning had just woken up, and his reactions were a beat slow. He had been stunned when he saw Wei Wuxian vomiting blood, and now, remembering that he had injured Wei Wuxian when he was delirious, he said guiltily, "Young Master, I'm sorry..."

Wei Wuxian waved his hand and said, "Alright, alright, did you really think you could do anything to me with that punch?"

With gentle, dark eyes, she looked at Lan Wangji's expression and said, "Hanguang-jun, please have a seat."

Wei Wuxian suddenly realized, no wonder he felt like he had forgotten something, it turned out that Lan Zhan hadn't sat down for so long since he came in. But the only place to sit in the cave was a few stone beds, and each one was covered with strange things: flags, knives, boxes, bandages that had been wiped with blood, and uneaten fruit, it was a pitiful sight.

Wei Wuxian said, "But there's nowhere to sit here."

Wen Qing replied indifferently, "Of course there is." Then, without any hesitation, she swept everything from the stone bed onto the floor, saying, "See, here it is."

Jiang Yanli shook her head helplessly, then covered her mouth and chuckled twice.

In the past, Wei Wuxian's room in Lotus Pier was also a mess, but there were always maids to clean it for him. If it was something he used often or something he was close to, Jiang Yanli would tidy it up for him from time to time. This was probably the first time that a girl had so casually swept it to the ground like this.

Wei Wuxian was shocked: "Hey!"

Wen Ning added, "Yes, Young Master Lan, please sit and have some tea..." He then moved the tray he was carrying closer to Lan Wangji. The tray held two teacups, meticulously clean, but Wei Wuxian glanced at them and said, "So shabby! Giving guests only water, not even tea leaves!"

Wen Ning said, "I just asked if they had any left, and Fourth Uncle said they didn't have any tea in stock..."

Wei Wuxian picked up a cup of water, took a sip, and said, "That was really inappropriate. Next time we have guests, we should prepare more." He then realized how ridiculous he sounded. Where was there a "next time," and where were the guests coming from?

Wen Qing then said, "You have the nerve to say that? I've asked you to go down the mountain to buy things several times, and what kind of rubbish have you bought? Where are the radish seeds I asked you to buy today?"

Wei Wuxian said, "Where did I buy any random stuff! I bought all the fun things for A-Yuan, right A-Yuan?"

Wen Yuan, however, refused to cooperate, saying, "Brother Xian is lying. It was this brother who bought it for me."

Wei Wuxian was furious: "This is outrageous!"

Laughter and chatter filled the Demon-Subduing Cave, but then Lan Wangji suddenly turned and walked out of the cave without saying a word.

Wen Qing and Wen Ning were both taken aback. Wei Wuxian asked, "Lan Zhan?"

Lan Wangji paused, his voice devoid of emotion, and said, "I should go back."

Lan Wangji couldn't remember exactly how he felt at that time. It was a complex feeling. When he left, besides regret, self-blame, and helplessness, he seemed to feel a little bit of relief as well.

Fortunately, after all he went through, Wei Wuxian was able to find such a place to rest. Fortunately, he still had Wen Ning and Wen Qing by his side to accompany him through the difficult days. Fortunately... Wei Wuxian did not succumb to despair at that time; he only wanted to protect the people he loved. Fortunately, it was the impermanence of life that made him feel better, rather than the change of people and things.

As long as the person hasn't changed, he's willing to walk alongside him, no matter how difficult it may be. Even if the person has changed, he'll definitely pull him back.

He left the Demon-Subduing Cave without looking back. Wen Ning became frightened again, as if she thought it was her fault. Wen Yuan cried out anxiously, "Brother!"

He tried to chase after him, dragging his short legs, but Wei Wuxian grabbed him and tucked him under his arm, saying, "You guys wait for me here."

He took three steps at a time and caught up with Lan Wangji, saying, "Are you leaving? I'll see you off."

Lan Wangji remained silent.

Wen Yuan, nestled under Wei Wuxian's arm, looked up at him and asked, "Brother, aren't you eating here?"

Lan Wangji glanced at him, reached out a hand, and gently patted his head.

Wen Yuan thought he wanted to stay, and her face lit up with joy. She whispered, "A-Yuan overheard a secret. They said there's going to be lots of delicious food today..."

Wei Wuxian said, "This brother has food at home, so we won't keep him."

Wen Yuan gave an "Oh," her disappointment evident, and hung her head, no longer speaking.

The two of them, carrying a child, walked quietly all the way until they reached the foot of the mass grave. They stopped in their tracks without saying a word.

After a long pause, Wei Wuxian said, "Lan Zhan, you just asked me if I planned to continue like this? Actually, I also wanted to ask others. If I don't continue like this, what else can I do?"

He said, "Abandon the path of ghosts and stop cultivating? What will happen to the people on this mountain then?"

“Give them up? I can’t do it. I believe you couldn’t do it either if you were in my shoes.”

He said, "Is there anyone who can show me an easy, safe path? A path that, even without cultivating the ghost path, allows me to protect those I want to protect."

Upon hearing this, Lan Wangji and Jiang Cheng felt a dull ache in their dantian, as if the pain of their shared core extraction had truly remained within them.

At that time, no one knew that Wei Wuxian had lost his golden core. They only felt that he was ambitious and, having experienced the power of the demonic path, was unwilling to cultivate spiritual power again.

But they also knew that if it weren't for the power of the Demonic Path, Wei Wuxian, Jiang Cheng, and the Jiang family would have been devoured by these self-proclaimed righteous people long ago. With the Demonic Path, only Wei Wuxian was devoured.

Now, with the addition of Wen Qing and others, Wei Wuxian's wings, which he single-handedly supported, could no longer protect them.

Lan Wangji looked at him without answering, but they both knew the answer in their hearts.

There is no such road.

There is no solution.

Wei Wuxian said slowly, "Thank you for spending time with me today, and thank you for telling me the news of my senior sister's marriage. However, right and wrong are in my own hands, praise and blame are up to others, and I don't care about gains or losses. I know what I should do. I also believe that I can control myself."

As if he had already anticipated his attitude, Lan Wangji slightly turned his head and closed his eyes.

Farewell.

Lan Wangji lowered his head and stroked the face of the person in his arms.

Who knew that after that parting, they would meet again in the city that never sleeps.

On the way back up the mountain, Wei Wuxian realized that he had agreed to treat Lan Wangji to dinner, but the two had parted ways in a rather uneasy atmosphere. And, unsurprisingly, he forgot to pay the bill.

Wei Wuxian thought to himself, "Well, Lan Zhan is so rich anyway, it's no big deal to make him pay again. Besides, he should still have some money on him, he shouldn't have spent it all on some children's toys. I can always treat him next time... But there's no such thing as a next time."

Think about it, almost every time he met Lan Wangji, it ended badly for one reason or another. Maybe they really weren't suited to be friends.

However, there won't be many opportunities to try again in the future.

Lan Xichen turned to look at Lan Wangji, whose aura was gradually cooling down, and sighed.

Wangji felt guilty for not being good with words and regretted not caring more about Wuxian's true situation.

But he forgot that Wei Wuxian could hide the fact that Jiang Cheng had switched his core from him, and now he could hide the fact that Lan Wangji had lost his core from him.

Wen Yuan held his hand with her left hand, took a small wooden sword in her right hand, and put the grass butterfly on her head, saying, "Brother Xian, will Brother Youqian come again?"

Wei Wuxian burst out laughing and asked, "What's a rich brother?"

Wen Yuan said earnestly, "A rich brother is a rich brother."

Wei Wuxian asked, "What about me?"

Sure enough, Wen Yuan said, "You are Brother Xian. Brother No Money."

Wei Wuxian glanced at him, then suddenly snatched the butterfly away, saying, "What, you like him just because he's rich?"

Wen Yuan stood on tiptoe to grab it, saying urgently, "Give it back to me...that was bought for me!"

Wei Wuxian was a silly guy; he could get excited even playing pranks on a child. He put the butterfly on his head and said, "I'm not giving it back. You still call him 'Father,' but what do you call me? I've only ever called him 'Brother,' which makes me a generation younger than him for no reason!"

Wen Yuan jumped up and said, "I didn't call him 'father'!"

Wei Wuxian said, "I heard you call me that. I don't care, I want to be a higher generation than my brother and father, so what should you call me?"

Wen Yuan said with a wronged expression, "But...but A-Yuan...doesn't want to call you 'Mother'...it's so strange..."

The previously tense atmosphere was suddenly filled with the adorable, childlike words of Xiao Wenyuan.

"Pfft, hahahahaha..."

Jin Ling and Lan Jingyi burst out laughing instantly.

This child is truly promising. He knew early on that the person with the highest status at home is his mother. Look at Elder Jiang and Jin Zixuan; aren't they both good husbands who listen to their wives?

Lan Sizhui, supporting Lan Jingyi who was laughing so hard he was doubled over, couldn't laugh at all.

Could he be considered a prophet for once?

Wei Wuxian slammed his fist on the table again: "Who told you to call him 'Mother'? The one of higher rank than Brother and Father is Grandfather, don't you know that? If you really like him that much, you should have said so earlier! If you had, I would have let him take you away. His family may be rich, but they're terrifying. They'd take you back, lock you in a room, and make you copy books from morning till night, wouldn't that scare you?!"

Everyone: ...

Lan family: ...

What impression did Wei Wuxian get from listening to a lecture by the Lan Clan back then?

Lan Qiren snorted coldly.

Other aristocratic scions strictly abide by the Lan Clan's rules, but you, Wei Ying, are always running around and defying discipline. If we don't punish you, who will we punish?

Even so, the younger generation in Tianjing who have not yet gone to Lan Clan to study, when they recalled the densely packed rules on the Lan Clan's rule stone that they saw in Tianying, broke out in a cold sweat.

If they accidentally violate the Lan Clan's rules, and are searched from morning till night, will they even have the chance to go home alive...?

Wen Yuan quickly shook her head and whispered, "...I'm not leaving...I still want my grandma."

Wei Wuxian pressed on: "You want your grandmother, but not me?"

Wen Yuan flattered, "Yes, I want it. I also want Brother Xian." He counted on his fingers, one by one, "I also want Brother Youqian, Sister Aqing, Brother Ning, Fourth Uncle, Sixth Uncle..."

Wei Wuxian threw the butterfly back onto his head and said, "That's enough. You're drowning me in the crowd."

Wen Yuan quickly put the grass butterfly into her pocket, afraid that he would snatch it away again, and then asked, "Will Brother Youqian come back or not?"

Wei Wuxian kept smiling.

After a while, he said, "I probably won't come again."

Wen Yuan asked disappointedly, "Why?"

Wei Wuxian said, "For no reason. Everyone in this world has their own things to do and their own paths to walk. We're busy enough with our own families, how can we have time to always revolve around others?"

Ultimately, we were not meant to be companions on the same path.

Upon hearing this, Lan Xichen recalled the day Lan Wangji returned to Cloud Recesses.

It was late at night, and the uncle merely glanced at Wangji before returning to his room without saying a word. Wangji knelt outside the Lan Gate for the entire night, until the uncle finally woke him at noon the next day.

He still remembers that tall and determined figure in the night.

Everyone said that Hanguang-jun was aloof and cold, and naturally distant, but he knew that his younger brother was the most affectionate.

He admired Wei Wuxian and trusted his character, so he was willing to go see him when he was abandoned by everyone, even if it was just under the guise of night hunting. He wanted to see him and at least know if he was doing well.

He felt guilty towards the Lan Clan and his uncle, not for the wrongdoing itself, but for acting against the clan's wishes as a member of the Lan Clan and a direct descendant of the main branch. He didn't want to go against his conscience to please the world, so he could only punish himself time and time again to save face for the Lan Clan.

Wen Yuan gave a vague "Oh" and looked disappointed.

Wei Wuxian scooped him up, tucking him under his arm, and grumbled, "...Who cares about the bustling, sunny road? I'll just walk that narrow, single-plank bridge to the end...walk! walk!...to the end?"

Right and wrong are determined by oneself, praise and blame are determined by others, and gains and losses are irrelevant.

Wei Wuxian knew the price would be utter ruin, yet he still did it.

Did he choose the narrow bridge himself? No, he was pushed to the brink, and fate left him with only this one path.

He was once a sunny and cheerful boy who longed for recognition and to protect his family. But after witnessing the suffering of innocent people time and time again, he eventually realized that the path of justice could not tolerate truth and compassion.

Walking onto the narrow bridge was the only way for him to uphold his conscience in the darkness.

Though there be thousands of people, I will go.

When the majority chooses silence or compromise, those who persist in their dissent inevitably face isolation. He was willing to consciously march towards destruction because he always upheld the justice in his heart.

The hustle and bustle on the main road will eventually fade away, but the footprints on the narrow bridge will forever be etched with starlight in the passage of time.