Chapter 8 Discovery
When Wei Wuxian tiptoed quietly into the quiet room's door, the moonlight from the windowsill just barely filtered through the threshold, casting a layer of silver frost on the blue brick floor. Lan Wangji sat at his desk by the window, a scroll clutched in his hands. The candlelight flickered for half an hour, yet he hadn't turned a single page.
"Are you back?" Lan Wangji's voice was emotionless. His eyes moved away from the page and fell on him, his eyelashes casting a small shadow under his eyes.
Wei Wuxian closed the door, rubbed his frozen hands, and deliberately leaned over to smell it: "Oh, is Han Guangjun waiting for me?" He caught a glimpse of the tea warming on the desk, with steam still coming out of the spout of the teapot. He couldn't help but feel happy in his heart - this man didn't say it, but his actions were very honest.
Lan Wangji didn't answer, but simply closed the scroll and gently stroked the cover with his fingertips. Wei Wuxian then noticed that his knuckles had turned slightly white as he gripped the scroll, and his ears had quietly turned a light red, like a child who had been wronged.
“What’s going on?” Wei WuXian sat down next to him and deliberately nudged him with his shoulder. “Who upset our Second Brother Lan?”
Lan Wangji turned his head and looked at him gravely, his tone carrying a subtle hint of depression: "He's been gone for a long time."
“Isn’t it because I’m worried that Sizhui will be scared alone in the ancestral hall?” Wei Wuxian explained with a smile. Suddenly realizing something, he reached out and pinched Lan Wangji’s cheek. “Oh, is our Hanguang-jun…jealous?”
Lan Wangji's eyelashes trembled, and he turned his face away, but the redness on the tips of his ears spread to his neck: "Nonsense."
“I’m not talking nonsense.” Wei WuXian leaned in closer, his nose almost touching his earlobe. “You think I’ve been spending too much time with that kid and neglecting you, right?”
His voice was tinged with laughter, and his warm breath brushed against Lan Wangji's neck, like a feather gently scratching. Lan Wangji's Adam's apple moved, and he suddenly reached out and grasped his wrist, not with great force, but with a firm grip that refused to let him break free.
"Wei Ying." He turned his head, the coldness in his eyes had long since dissipated, leaving only an indissoluble tenderness. "Come here."
Wei Wuxian's heart skipped a beat, and before he could react, Lan Wangji gently pulled him into his arms. The moonlight from the window fell perfectly on their intertwined lapels, illuminating the white jade hairpin in Lan Wangji's hair.
“Lan Zhan…” Wei Wuxian’s words were stuck in his throat. Lan Wangji lowered his head and placed a gentle kiss on his lips, with a hint of cool mint and a subtle hint of eagerness.
At first, it was just a light touch, like spring rain falling on a lake, creating ripples. But gradually, the kiss deepened, Lan Wangji's grip on the back of his neck tightening slightly, as if to rub him into his bones and blood.
Wei Wuxian smiled, closing his eyes. He wrapped his arms around his waist and buried his face in the crook of his neck. The only sound in the quiet room was the occasional crackling of the candlelight and the intertwining of their breaths, gentle as honey melting on the tongue.
After an unknown amount of time, Lan Wangji finally stepped back a little, resting his forehead against his, his voice slightly hoarse: "Next time... don't be gone for so long."
“Got it.” Wei Wuxian smiled until his eyes curved into crescents. He reached out and pinched his earlobe. “Next time, I’ll bring you along too. I’ll let you see how I love my son. Okay?”
Lan Wangji's ears turned red again, but he didn't refute. He just reached out and gathered the scattered hair on his cheeks: "Si Zhui...how is it?"
“After he copied it forty times, I let him go to sleep.” Wei Wuxian leaned against his chest, his voice lazy, “The child is very sensible. He knows he’s wrong and he didn’t insist on doing it anymore.”
Lan Wangji was silent for a moment, then whispered, "Today... I was too impatient."
“I know.” Wei WuXian looked up at him, a smile in his eyes. “You’re afraid. Afraid that something might happen to him, that we’ll lose something again.”
Lan Wangji's fingers gently brushed across his cheek, his movements unbelievably gentle: "Hmm."
“Don’t worry.” Wei WuXian held his hand, brought it to his lips and kissed it gently, “That child is stronger than we thought. Besides, we are here to protect him.”
Lan Wangji looked into his sparkling eyes and suddenly smiled. The smile was faint, but like ice and snow just beginning to melt, it instantly illuminated the entire quiet room.
"Okay," he said.
The moonlight from the window gradually moved to the edge of the bed, and the candlelight slowly burned out. Wei Wuxian yawned and pulled Lan Wangji up. "Go to sleep, go to sleep. We have to get up early tomorrow to watch that kid copy the house rules."
Lan Wangji let him pull him along, and when he reached the bedside, he suddenly stopped, pulled out a small brocade bag from his bosom, and handed it to Wei Wuxian.
"What is this?" Wei Wuxian took it. It felt soft and a little warm.
"This is for you." Lan Wangji said softly, "The last time I went down the mountain, I saw this uniquely crafted sachet and bought it."
Wei Wuxian opened it and saw it was filled with dried julibrissin flowers, which had a sweet fragrance. He raised an eyebrow and leaned close to Lan Wangji's ear, "Second Brother Lan, are you flirting with me?"
Lan Wangji's ears turned red again. He turned around and blew out the candle, leaving only a muffled "Sleep".
In the darkness, Wei WuXian put the sachet into his arms, smiled, and leaned close to him, kissing him on the cheek: "Thanks, Brother Lan. I like it very much."
Lan Wangji said nothing, but just reached out and hugged him tighter.
The quiet room finally fell completely silent, with only moonlight filtering through the window lattice, casting a faint glow on their clasped hands. Wei Wuxian leaned against Lan Wangji's chest, listening to his steady heartbeat, and suddenly felt that no matter how long these years in the Cloud Recesses were, as long as he had this person by his side, they would never seem long.
In the ancestral hall, Lan Sizhui curled up on a futon, covered with the wool blanket his father had left behind, sleeping soundly. He might not have known that, out of sight, two people were guarding his dreams and this hard-earned home in the most gentle way.
But they didn't know at that time that such peaceful nights were few and far between. A bigger storm was brewing in the near future, waiting to drag them into an unknown fate.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
