Backlash Part 1

Chapter 58: The Jingshi

The sound of someone clearing their throat startled Wei Wuxian. The kiss he was sharing with Lan Wangji immediately broke as they both flushed slightly. Wen Qing shook her head as she smirked at them. Just behind her stood Wen Qionglin and Lan Xichen, both of whom were blushing in faint embarrassment. Without further comment Wen Qing began setting out the food for the meal. Wei Wuxian suddenly felt self conscious. He started to awkwardly slide off of Lan Wangji's lap, but an arm suddenly tightened around his waist.

"Lan Zhan?" Wei Wuxian asked quietly. Lan Wangji said nothing, just nodded politely to the people who joined them. Wei Wuxian knew he was blushing at this point and desperately wanted to conceal his embarrassment. He had just been caught by both of his siblings while making out with Lan Wangji. Even worse, Zewu-Jun saw them making out so intensely that they didn't even notice anyone had arrived. Wei Wuxian heard a soft chuckle come from Wen Qing that did nothing but make him feel more embarrassed. He was not supposed to be someone who got flustered. Lan Wangji should be the one getting flustered.

Wei Wuxian glanced up at Lan Wangji and saw the pink tinted ears indicating Lan Wangji was embarrassed. Yet all Lan Wangji did was continue to pretend everything was normal and prevent Wei Wuxian from fleeing. Wei Wuxian did his best to try and pretend he wasn't flustered. He avoided looking at the three people who had just joined them and tried to will the blush to leave his face.

"A-Ning cooked today, so don't expect much heat," Wen Qing said calmly as she set out the dishes. That was good news for the Lan brothers, although whenever Jiang Yanli prepared food she always made a portion without chillies specifically for them. Lan Wangji thought Wei Wuxian might complain. This was the first time in the last few weeks that Wen Qionglin had prepared food. Usually it was Jiang Yanli, and until very recently she cooked and shared every meal with them. After Wei Wuxian's night long nightmare, everyone had sort of wordlessly agreed to give Wei Wuxian more alone time with Lan Wangji.

To Lan Wangji's surprise Wei Wuxian did not complain about the lack of heat. The dishes were heavily seasoned, but there was no heat to them. It was certainly different from the food served in Cloud Recesses. Lan Wangji was not a picky eater. Although he struggled with dishes that were very spicy, he would of course still eat them if he was served them. The rules clearly stated that one should not be a picky eater, nor should one waste food. Lan Wangji did think he understood a bit better why so many guest disciples seemed to struggle with the plain and slightly bitter dishes served in Cloud Recesses. If they were used to food like what Wen Qionglin or Jiang Yanli prepared, then it would be quite a change.

"Lan Zhan." Wei Wuxian excitedly got Lan Wangji's attention as he brought his chopsticks towards Lan Wangji's mouth. Wei Wuxian was smiling mischievously as he began feeding Lan Wangji. Apparently Wei Wuxian's previous embarrassment, while adorable, was short lived. He was now back to his normal shameless behaviour as he not only fed Lan Wangji, but insisted that Lan Wangji feed him. When the meal was done Wen Qionglin cleared everything away while Wen Qing took out a stack of blank paper.

Suddenly Wei Wuxian was very aware that this was going to be their first time really talking about and trying to make plans for the coming events. Lan Xichen said he believed them, but they hadn't actually told him much of what was going to happen. Wei Wuxian wasn't certain which memories Lan Xichen had seen of Wen Qing's. He hadn't asked. He only knew whatever he saw was enough for Lan Xichen to say that he believed them. Wei Wuxian bit his lip nervously.

"I'm not sure where we should start..." Wei Wuxian mumbled into the slightly awkward silence. Wen Qing more or less expected Wei Wuxian to have some difficulty in parts of this discussion. So she wasn't surprised that she might need to be the one to start the conversation.