Dark Knight | WangXian Novel

28: Spectacularly Spellbinding

"NO HITTING QIAN-GEGE!"

Lan Wangji pursed his lips, building up energy to defend A-Yuan when Shufu bursts his gut. Wei Wuxian flinched. "A-Yuan..." he whispered through gritted teeth.

"Hmph."

Lan Qiren harrumphed.

He narrowed his eyes; they bore into A-Yuan's angry eyes. What was going on in his fuming mind — who knew? All Lan Wangji did know was that Lan Qiren huffed, spun around and returned to his table.

The other Elder in the room walked over to Qiren and laid a hand on his shoulder. "Qiren. It's time to start believing in second chances."

Lan Qiren looked at him, absorbing the words.

"Shufu," Lan Xichen began.

He mumbled in a snapping tone "Fine, Xichen."

Lan Wangji blinked. Was Shufu shutting xiongzhang up?

"But Shufu," Xichen tried again.

Lan Qiren ignored him and picked up his scroll, unrolled it and read through the reports from the watchtowers.

Wei Wuxian bit his lip. "Shifu, Lan Zhan's right. We're keeping A-Yuan either way. We only wanted to make it official for the sake of formalities and tradition, which are things you always treasure, Shifu, please–"

Lan Qiren looked up from his scroll. "I already gave my answer, what more are you rambling for?" He looked back at his scroll. "Xichen," he called out. "I leave it to you."

"Shufu?" Lan Xichen blinked.

Lan Qiren raised an eyebrow. "What? I said 'fine'."

Xichen's jaw dropped in epiphany and he beamed at the newfound family beside him. Wei Wuxian grinned back, patting A-Yuan's head happily.

"Right, Shufu," Lan Xichen bowed to Lan Qiren and the Elder and hurried out the door, signalling to them to follow. Lan Wangji turned to his husband and A-Yuan and smiled.

A-Yuan ogled at him, open-mouthed, round-eyed, for he hardly ever saw Lan Wangji smiling.

Wei Wuxian had seen it all his life and yet he found it too spectacularly spellbinding. Lan Zhan hugged A-Yuan closer, smiling as he rubbed circles on A-Yuan's back, assuring the little boy that things had worked out just fine. 

**********

"Well?"

"Well what, Xichen-ge?"

"The name. So? What have you got in mind?" Lan Xichen looked between the fathers-to-be.

"What do you mean? He's got a name."

The Lan disciple who was filling in the details of the adoption looked up at them. "The child needs a birth name, courtesy name, and surname, Wei Gongzi."

"Oh, all that," Wei Wuxian nodded. "Well, the birth name would be Yuan."

"Mn, we'll stick to that," Lan Zhan nodded.

The Lan noted it down and rose his head again. "Courtesy name, Hanguang-Jun?"

Wei Wuxian turned to his husband because he had a feeling...

...that was proven right.

Lan Wangji had thought of a name already.

"Sizhui."

Lan Xichen blinked. "Hm... not a bad name, I should say, xiongdi," he grinned subtly and understandingly.

The other Lan nodded. "Er, Si... zhui..." he twirled his brush, wondering which characters these were. "Hanguang-Jun, this is Si from think? Zhui... Chase?"