A Flower Of Youth

Chapter 3

A/N: Sorry this took so long to update! I had major writer's block for this particular story. Hope you enjoy the new chapter!

"Lan Yuan, did you go somewhere last night?" Lan Hao whispers as he sits down next to him at breakfast.

"I..I'll tell you later," he whispers back, his eyes darting to one of the sect elders, who was keeping an eye on the children from the side of the room. They eat their food together and soon head off for their lecture.

"I had a hard time sleeping," Lan Yuan whispers to his friend. "I went off to practice my guqin." Lan Hao's eyes widen. Going out so late after curfew was against the rules.

"Did you get caught?" He whispers, his eyes light with excitement. Any other disciple would have reprimanded him for breaking sect rules. Sizhui hadn't meant to break sect rules and he promised himself he wouldn't do it again.

"Well..Zewu-jun didn't punish me. He let me go...but maybe it is just for this one time," Sizhui tells him.

"Maybe," But there's a mischievous glistening in Lan Hao's eyes. Lan Yuan is about to warn him not to try anything, but then the teacher turns his eyes towards them and they quickly turn back towards the front of the class.

During class, Lan Yuan was able to answer several questions correctly when asked by the teacher, which earned him some nod of approval from the sect elders who also oversaw the class. The monthly exams would be coming up soon so Lan Yuan and Lan Hao spend the next couple of days in the library or in a quiet area of Cloud Recesses reviewing their books.

"I hope I can learn Inquiry soon," Lan Yuan says as he finishes copying notes for one book and reaches for another.

"You want to learn to talk with spirits? Why?" Lan Hao tilts his head. "I don't know if I want to be speaking to the dead...,"

"It's part of our sect cultivation practice," Lan Yuan points out. "It's essential for us to learn."

"You're right," Lan Hao sighs. "I'm mainly excited to learn how to use Lan Yi's Assassination Cord technique."

"We won't be learning that in many years. It's far too advanced for us," Lan Yuan laughs.

"Inquiry is quite difficult, is it not? It's the first song we learn when cultivating with our guqins but it requires precision or else the spirits can lie."

"I didn't realize you were really paying attention in class today," Lan Yuan teases.

"What? Of course I do! I may be half-asleep, but I can still take in information!" Lan hao retorts.

"Ah, Lan Hao. You really are so different from the other disciples here...every other disciple follows the rules so strictly. Even the youngest ones."

"What's wrong with being different?" Lan Hao says defensively. "My mother was very much like me...she taught me to never forget to have spirit. Besides, there's way more to being a cultivator than just following strict rules. We have to be honest and open."

Lan Yuan remembers his friend telling him that his mother had married into the sect and had not been born within it. Despite having been raised inside Cloud Recesses, Lan Hao had never forgotten his mother's teaching.

"We're both different," Lan Yuan says softly. "There is nothing wrong with being yourself. But we still need to obey clan rules. Otherwise, Master Lan won't be happy with us."

"I understand," Lan Hao nods obediently, but the mischievous glint never leaves his eyes. Lan Yuan sighs and gets back to working on his books. Once they were done, he and Lan Hao leave the library and decide to find a place to play in Cloud Recesses.