Backlash Part 1

Chapter 56: The Hanshi

It was early morning when Wen Qing made her way to the Hanshi. It had been the better part of a week since Wen Qing had last spoken with Lan Xichen and instructed him to begin keeping the journal. She knew Lan Xichen had been trying to clear a day for them to sit down and discuss the events of the future. Since she hadn't heard from him, Wen Qing assumed he hadn't been able to clear a day yet. Still it had been long enough that they should sit down at least long enough to compare journals. If there were lingering effects from the accident that occurred during empathy, then they needed to know about it sooner rather than later.

Wen Qing knocked lightly on the door and waited patiently. She had learned quickly that the easiest time to try and find Lan Xichen was in the early morning hours. Lan Xichen had approached her a few times during that hour for updates on Wei Wuxian, much to her irritation the first time. Wen Qing was not Wei Wuxian, but she was not all that amicable to unexpected disruptions to her sleep. That first day she had been woken in the middle of the night because of Wei Wuxian having a nightmare. He had dreamed about Nightless City, when the clans had scattered her ashes, and would not calm down until he saw that she and Wen Qionglin were okay. So when Lan Xichen knocked on her door barely ten minutes after five am, she had not been particularly happy.

Part of her wondered if perhaps this was a similar situation now. It was barely past five am. It was possible he was not up and about yet. She heard movement from inside. The door opened only moments later. Lan Xichen invited her inside with a polite smile. He didn't seem to be in a rush, or caught off guard. She supposed she shouldn't be surprised. He was raised waking up at this time every day. He invited her to sit and offered her tea. She brought the cup up and inhaled deeply, focusing on the scent. She looked across the table and immediately frowned. Lan Xichen's eyes were slightly bloodshot and he looked a bit paler than usual.

"You do recall I told you to take it easy while you are healing, correct?" She inquired with a mildly disapproving tone. Lan Xichen paused for a moment but quickly gave her a polite smile.

"I have been using minimal spiritual energy." He assured her calmly. However, Wen Qing did not seem to be appeased.

"You also need to take care of yourself. Pushing yourself physically is not going to do you any favors." Wen Qing scolded. She stood up and promptly moved next to him. Without a word of warning she took his wrist and examined him. Lan Xichen was a bit taken aback. Having someone scold him for pushing himself was a completely foreign experience. His parents were not really a part of his life. His uncle was emotionally distant. He was not the sort to directly tell you to take it easy. Lan Xichen had no older siblings. He was the one who had to try and tell Lan Wangji to take care of himself. Something he honestly never felt he was very good at.

"You've been overworking. You need to either hand off some of your duties to others for a while or find things you can postpone." Wen Qing stated firmly as she sat back.

"Thank you Wen Qing. I'm fine. I've just been working a bit late so I can clear a day. We need to have a discussion about upcoming events, and it doesn't seem to be the sort of conversation that you squeeze in between other duties," Lan Xichen said with a small appreciative smile. Wen Qing's scowl deepened and she levelled him with an un-amused glare. He had seen her direct this look to Wei Wuxian several times.

"Did I give the impression this was a suggestion?" Wen Qing inquired. Lan Xichen suddenly felt like he understood how Wei Wuxian must feel when Wen Qing was threatening him to comply with treatment. Wen Qing's entire demeanour was somewhere between intimidating and caring. It was incredibly difficult to argue against, but at the same time it wasn't as though he could ignore his duties. Further his uncle was busy teaching the guest disciple classes. He didn't have as much time to be able to help. Wen Qing seemed to sense his resistance as she narrowed her eyes at him.