Chapter 83
Chapter Summary: [He raised his voice, "You and Lan Wangji joined forces to slay the Slaughtering Xuanwu, fighting a bloody battle! Amazing! But what about me?!"]
...
-------------------------------------
He raised his voice and said, "You and Lan Wangji fought bravely and bloodily together to slay the Slaughtering Xuanwu! That's amazing! But what about me?!"
He slammed his fist on a pillar and gritted his teeth, saying, "...I've been traveling for days, I'm exhausted, and I haven't had a moment's rest!"
Wei Wuxian said, "What are family precepts! Just because there are family precepts doesn't mean we have to follow them. Look at the Gusu Lan Clan's family precepts, there are more than three thousand of them. If we had to follow every single one of them, would people even be able to live?"
He jumped off the wooden fence and said, "Furthermore, does being the head of a family necessarily mean adhering to family traditions and precepts? I don't believe that all the heads of the Yunmeng Jiang Clan throughout history have been the same. Even the Gusu Lan Clan has produced an anomaly like Lan Yi, but who dares to deny her strength and status? When it comes to the famous immortals of the Lan Clan, who dares to overlook her? Who can overlook her string killing technique?"
Jiang Cheng remained silent, seemingly having calmed down somewhat. Wei Wuxian put his arm around his shoulder again and said, "When you become the head of the Lan Clan, I will be your subordinate, just like your father and my father. What's so special about the Gusu Lan Clan having the Twin Jades? We, Yunmeng, have the Twin Heroes! So, shut up. Who says you're not worthy of being the head of the clan? No one can say that, not even you. Anyone who dares to say that is asking for a beating."
Jiang Cheng scoffed, "Look at you now? Who can you beat up?" With that, he slapped Wei Wuxian on the chest. Although the iron brand wound had been treated and bandaged, the sudden slap still stung. Wei Wuxian roared, "Jiang Cheng!!! Die!!!"
Jiang Cheng dodged his palm strike and shouted, "You're in excruciating pain now! Why did you try to be a hero back then! You deserve it! This will teach you a lesson!"
Listening to the two teenagers' bold words, Lan Xichen, Nie Huaisang, and the others who watched them walk towards a confrontation couldn't help but sigh.
Seeing this conversation between himself and Wei Wuxian again, Jiang Cheng's mind was filled with the four words Wei Wuxian uttered in the Guanyin Temple:
"I broke my promise."
Jiang Cheng glanced at the person who was now quietly nestled in Lan Wangji's arms out of the corner of his eye, closed his eyes, and swallowed back the question he was about to ask.
What did he want to ask?
Do you still remember the Twin Heroes of Yunmeng?
Or... would you still like to return to Yunmeng?
He thought, "No need."
Wei Wuxian was a free-spirited person, and traveling the world with Lan Wangji was perhaps the most suitable option for him.
Let's just use Yunmeng and Lotus Pier as our resting place on the way back.
Wei Wuxian said, "Am I trying to be a hero? I had no choice. I acted faster than I thought! Stop running. I'll spare your life and ask you something! -- I have an empty sachet in my belt. Did you see it?"
Jiang Cheng said, "Did Mianmian give that to you? I didn't see it."
Wei Wuxian sighed in regret and said, "I'll ask her for one next time."
Jiang Cheng frowned and said, "Here we go again. You don't actually like her, do you? That girl is alright looking, but you can tell from her background that she's not very good. She's probably not even a disciple; she looks like the daughter of a household slave."
Wei Wuxian said, "What's wrong with being a servant? Aren't I also the son of a servant?"
Jiang Cheng said, "Can you compare to her? What servant is like you? Your master even peels lotus seeds and makes soup for you. I never even got to drink that!"
As soon as this conversation started, Wei Wuxian's "smoothing radar" went off again:
"Lan Zhan, Lan Zhan, why would I want another sachet? Even if I did, it would have to be sewn by Lan Er-gege!"
Lan Wangji patted his head: "Mm."
Everyone: ...Ugh
After listening for a couple more sentences, Wei Wuxian turned to Jiang Cheng and said:
"Jiang Cheng, I know you're jealous that I drank all the soup that my senior sister made, but to be fair, you really should apologize to Mian... uh, Miss Luo."
In a moment of carelessness, I almost forgot that Luo Qingyang was already married.
Jiang Cheng paused for a moment, then stood up and bowed to Luo Qingyang, who was sitting behind him.
“Miss Luo, Jiang Cheng’s words were inappropriate at the time. I hope you won’t take offense.”
Startled by the sudden apology from Jiang, a sect leader he hadn't known back then but who was now rumored to be unpredictable, Luo Qingyang quickly stood up and returned the greeting.
"Sect Leader Jiang, you flatter me."
Wei Wuxian said, "If you want some, just ask your sister to brew some more. By the way, speaking of Lan Zhan earlier, didn't he leave me any messages? Has his brother been found? How is his family doing?"
Jiang Cheng said, "You still expect him to leave you a message? It's good enough that he didn't leave you a sword. He went back. Lan Xichen is still missing, and Lan Qiren is extremely busy."
Wei Wuxian asked, "Where is the Lan Clan Head? How is he?"
Jiang Cheng said, "He has passed away."
Wei Wuxian paused for a moment, then asked, "Passed away?"
The image of Lan Wangji, his face illuminated by the firelight and streaked with tears, suddenly flashed through his mind, and he blurted out, "How is Lan Zhan?"
Jiang Cheng said, "What else can we do? He's gone back. Father originally said he would send someone to escort him back to Gusu, but he refused. Judging from his expression, he must have expected this day to come. After all, in the current situation, no one is better off than anyone else."
The two sat down on the wooden railing again. Wei Wuxian asked, "And what about Lan Xichen?"
Jiang Cheng said, "Didn't the Wen family want to burn down their library? Tens of thousands of ancient books and musical scores. The Lan family managed to salvage some of them, and they should have given them to Lan Xichen so he could take them with him and escape. They could protect as many as they could, otherwise they would all be gone. That's what everyone is guessing."
Looking up at the sky, Wei Wuxian said, "How disgusting."
Jiang Cheng said, "Yes. The Wen family is disgusting."
Wei Wuxian said, "How long are they going to keep jumping around like this? With so many of us, can't we join forces..."
In a few simple words, the Lan family members recalled the scene of the raging fire that had engulfed the mountains years ago, and the space fell silent once again.
Lan Xichen, who had been listening carefully to the last sentence, suddenly turned his head and smiled, "So Wuxian had already thought of uniting the hundred clans to resist the Wen clan back then."
Wei Wuxian nodded: "That's right. With so many aristocratic families and so many elites, if we hadn't failed to unite, giving the Wen clan the opportunity to pick us off one by one, we wouldn't have suffered such heavy losses. If we had united earlier, the likes of the Wen clan would have run away at the mere sight of us." Unfortunately... no one listened to him.
Just then, a series of chaotic footsteps approached, and a group of boys dressed in short-sleeved shirts leaped and bounded up the corridor like monkeys, shouting, "Senior Brother!!!"
The sixth junior brother exclaimed joyfully, "Eldest brother!!! You're alive!!!"
Wei Wuxian retorted, "What do you mean I'm alive? I never died!"
"Senior Brother, I heard you killed a giant demon beast that was over four hundred years old?! Really?! You killed it?!"
"What I really want to know is, senior brother, have you really not eaten for seven days?!"
"You really haven't secretly fasted behind our backs?!"
"Just how big is the Slaughtering Xuanwu? Can Lotus Lake contain it?!"
"The Slaughtering Xuanwu is just a turtle, isn't it?!"
"Senior Brother, you've spent the last seven days with Lan Wangji from Gusu? And he didn't kill you?!"
The previously slightly tense atmosphere was immediately shattered into chaos.
Everyone: ...
Birds of a feather flock together.
Jiang Laozong has really worked hard managing this group of people.
Wei Wuxian quietly poked Lan Wangji's waist, and Lan Wangji grabbed his hand: "Hey Lan Zhan, what kind of image do you have in the eyes of us fellow disciples?"
Lan Wangji: ...
Wei Wuxian's original injury wasn't serious; it was just that he hadn't received timely medication, and coupled with excessive fatigue and lack of food, he was physically strong. After the iron brand on his chest was treated, the fever quickly subsided, and after a few days in bed, he was back to his energetic self. Following the massacre at Muxi Mountain and the Xuanwu Rebellion, the Wen Clan's "Education Office" in Qishan completely disbanded, and the young masters of the various clans returned to their respective homes. Wen Chao's side didn't pursue the matter for the time being. Madam Yu seized the opportunity to berate Wei Wuxian, ordering him not to step outside the gates of Lotus Pier, not even to go boating on the lake. Thus, he could only spend his days flying kites with a group of Jiang Clan disciples.
Even the most fun game gets boring if you play it every day. So, after half a month, the young people grew increasingly uninterested. Wei Wuxian also lost interest and started shooting randomly, which surprisingly allowed Jiang Cheng to win first place several times.
That day, after the last round of shooting, Wei Wuxian shaded his eyes with his right hand, looked at the afterglow of the setting sun, and said, "Let's stop playing. Let's go home for dinner."
Jiang Cheng said, "So early today?"
Wei Wuxian threw down his bow, sat on the ground, and said dejectedly, "This is boring, I'm not shooting anymore. Who were the last place winners? Let's go pick them up with Sixth Brother."
One of the boys said, "Senior brother, you're so cunning. You always let others pick it up. You're so shameless."
Wei Wuxian waved his hand and said, "I can't help it. Madam Yu won't let me go out. She's at home now, and Jinzhu and Yinzhu are probably lurking in some corner watching me, ready to report me at any time. If I go out, Madam Yu will definitely whip me until I'm skinned alive."
The junior disciples with the worst records made a few jokes and then went out to retrieve their kites. Jiang Cheng stood, while Wei Wuxian sat on the ground. The two chatted for a few moments, and Wei Wuxian asked, "Uncle Jiang, why haven't you come back yet after leaving this morning? Will you make it in time for dinner?"
This morning, Jiang Fengmian and Madam Yu had another argument. Calling it an argument wouldn't quite be accurate, but it was mostly Madam Yu throwing a tantrum while Jiang Fengmian maintained a semblance of composure. Jiang Cheng said, "It's all because of our swords, we went to the Wen family again. Just thinking about how my Three Poisons Sword might be in the hands of some Wen dog now... it's really..."
He looked disgusted. Wei Wuxian said, "It's a pity our swords aren't smart enough. If they could automatically seal themselves, then nobody would be able to use them."
Jiang Cheng said, "If you cultivate for another eighty years, maybe you can."
Seeing Wei Wuxian looking utterly hopeless as he was locked up in Lotus Pier by Madam Yu, Lan Jingyi covered his mouth and chuckled, then leaned over to Lan Sizhui and said, "So there are still people in this world who can handle Senior Wei!"
Lan Sizhui glanced at him: "Isn't Hanguang-jun acceptable?"
Lan Jingyi replied with a look of unbearable disapproval, "What you call 'controlling' Hanguang-jun? That's absolutely...indulgence!"
Lan Sizhui: ...That's true.
Seeing the kite-flying activity behind them, Lan Jingyi went over again: "Sizhui, Sizhui, this game looks fun! Let's try it when we get back!"
Lan Sizhui: ...
That might mean you'll be hung up by Mr. Blue first... as a target.
Unlike the younger generation who found it amusing, Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng, upon seeing this, already knew what was about to happen.
Wei Wuxian's face turned pale instantly. He reached out with his cold fingers towards Jiang Yanli, who quickly grasped them with both hands.
"Senior sister...can we skip this part? I'll have Niangui skip it, okay?"
Seeing Wei Wuxian's suddenly reddened eyes and Jiang Cheng turn around after hearing his words, she suddenly understood something.
She wasn't stupid; she knew that what followed was the destruction of Lotus Pier. At that time, she was in Meishan and knew nothing about what had happened at Lotus Pier, so she also wanted to know what the scene, which her two younger brothers had only mentioned briefly, was really like.
She also wanted to accompany everyone in Lotus Pier to understand that most tragic period of history.
So even though she knew that Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng didn't want their sister to see that tragic scene, she was still willing to go through the most difficult days with them again.
"A-Xian, A-Cheng, believe me."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
