Wei WuXian slanted his body until he could reach the table, “You’re welcome. I’ll give them to you. These are your flowers now.”
Lan WangJi, “Why?”
Wei WuXian, “Why not? I just wanted to see how you’d react to such a thing.”
Lan WangJi, “Ridiculous.”
Wei WuXian, “Ridiculous is exactly what I am. Or else I wouldn’t have been so bored as to get you up here… Hey, hey, hey, don’t go. You’re already here. You won’t have a few sips?”
Lan WangJi, “Liquor is prohibited.”
Wei WuXian, “I know that liquor is prohibited in your sect, but it’s not like it’s the Cloud Recesses here. It’s fine if you have some.”
The girls immediately took out a new cup. After they poured it full, they pushed it toward the bundle of flowers. Lan WangJi still didn’t seem like he was going to sit down, but he didn’t seem like he was going to leave either.
Wei WuXian, “You finally came to Yunmeng for once, and you won’t even try the delicious liquor here? But, though the liquor is delicious, it’ll never even compare to the Emperor’s Smile at Gusu where you live. It really is the best of all liquor. In the future, if I have the chance to go to Gusu again, I’ll definitely save half or a dozen and drink them all at once. Just look at you—what’s wrong with you? The seats are right there, and you’re still standing. Go sit, won’t you?”
The girls urged him on, “Go sit, won’t you?” “Go sit!”
Lan WangJi’s light eyes examined the sensual girls coldly. Immediately after, his gaze landed on the coal-black, red-tasseled flute by Wei WuXian’s waist. His eyes looked down, as if he was thinking of the best wording. Seeing this, Wei WuXian raised a brow, mostly able to guess what he was going to say next.
As he expected, Lan WangJi said, slowly, “You should not accompany yourself with inhuman beings for so long.”
The smiles of the girls who were tittering around Wei WuXian immediately disappeared.
The gauze curtains swayed, at times blocking out the sunlight. The pavilion shifted between light and dark. Now, their snow-white cheeks seemed a bit too pale, so drained of blood that they almost seemed ashen. Their eyes were glued to Lan WangJi as well. Out of the blue came a chilling eeriness.
Wei WuXian lifted his hand, gesturing for them to move to the side. He shook his head as he spoke, “Lan Zhan, you really do become more boring the older you grow. You’re still so young. It’s not like you’re in your seventies, so don’t copy your uncle all the time, thinking of nothing but scolding others.”
Lan WangJi turned around and walked a step closer to him, “Wei Ying, it is still best if you come back to Gusu with me.”
“…” Wei WuXian, “I really haven’t heard this in a long time. The Sunshot Campaign is already over. I thought you’ve given up long ago.”
Lan WangJi, “Last time, during the hunt on Phoenix Mountain, have you noticed certain signs?”
Wei WuXian, “What signs?”
Lan WangJi, “The loss of control.”
Wei WuXian, “You mean me almost getting into a fight with Jin ZiXuan? I think you got something wrong. I want to fight with Jin ZiXuan whenever I see him.”
Lan WangJi, “And the things you said afterwards.”
Wei WuXian, “What things? I say so many things every day. I’ve long since forgotten about the things I said two months ago.”
Lan WangJi looked at him, as though he could tell at once that he didn’t take it seriously. He took in deep breath, “Wei Ying.”
He continued stubbornly, “The ghost path harms the body and the heart.”
Wei WuXian seemed as if his head began to hurt, “Lan Zhan, you… I’ve heard more than enough of these words that you say, and you still feel that you haven’t said them enough? You say that it harms the body, but I’m fine right now. You say that it harms the heart, but I haven’t become that frenzied, have I?”
Lan WangJi, “It is not too late yet. In the future, even if you regret…”
Without waiting for him to finish talking, Wei WuXian’s expression changed. He suddenly stood up, “Lan Zhan!”
Behind him, red light had begun to glow within the eyes of the girls. Wei WuXian, “Stop it.”
Thus, the girls lowered their heads and retreated, but still they stared unwaveringly at Lan WangJi. Wei WuXian turned to him, “What can I say? Even though I don’t think that I’ll regret it, I don’t like it when people take guesses at how I’m going to be in the future, either.”
After a while of silence, Lan WangJi replied, “I am the one who was out of line.”
Wei WuXian, “Not really. But, indeed, looks like I shouldn’t have invited you up here. Today was because of my presumption.”
Lan WangJi, “It was not.”
Wei WuXian smiled, his words polite, “Really? That’s good, then.”
He finished in one gulp the half cup of liquor that was left, “But, no matter what, I should still thank you. I’ll take it as you’re concerned for me.”
Wei WuXian waved his hand, “Then, I won’t bother HanGuang-Jun any longer. Let’s meet again if the chance comes up.”
When Wei WuXian returned to Lotus Pier, Jiang Cheng was wiping his sword. He lifted his eyes, “You’re back?”
Wei WuXian, “I’m back.”
Jiang Cheng, “Your face looks terrible. Don’t tell me you ran into Jin ZiXuan?”
Wei WuXian, “Worse than Jin ZiXuan. Guess who.”
Jiang Cheng, “Give me a hint.”
Wei WuXian, “Wants to lock me up.”
Jiang Cheng frowned, “Lan Zhan? Why is he at Yunmeng?”
Wei WuXian, “No idea. He’s in the streets, probably searching for someone. After the Sunshot Campaign, he hasn’t brought this up in such a long time. Now he’s at it again.”
Jiang Cheng, “It’s your fault for calling him over first.”
Wei WuXian, “How did you know that it was me who called him over first?”
Jiang Cheng, “Do you even have to ask? Which time has it not been you? You’re a strange one as well. Clearly every time you part with him on bad terms, so why do you keep on trying to get him annoyed?”
Wei WuXian thought about it, “I’m ridiculous?”
Jiang Cheng rolled his eyes, thinking to himself, <em>So you do know</em>. His eyes went to his sword again. Wei WuXian, “Just how many times do you have to wipe your sword in one day?”
Jiang Cheng, “Three times. And your sword? How long has it been since you last wiped it?”
Wei WuXian took a pear and bit into it, “Tossed it into my room. Once a month is good enough.”
Jiang Cheng, “From now on, carry your sword in important events like hunts or Discussion Conferences. That’s a ripe example of lack of discipline for others to laugh at.”
Wei WuXian, “It’s not like you don’t know. I hate it the most when others force me to do things. The more they force me to do something, the less I want to do it. I’m not carrying my sword—what are they going to do about it?”
Jiang Cheng glared at him. Wei WuXian added, “And I don’t want to be pulled into a sword duel by people I don’t even know. Whenever my sword unsheathes, there has to be blood. Unless they give me a few people to kill, nobody can bother me. So I’ll just not take it. Solves everything. It’s better that way.”