Backlash Part 1

Chapter 66: First Sweet

They had ordered dessert. Luo Qingyang was sharing some personal stories from when she was little. Jiang Yanli was struggling to contain her laughter enough to actually eat. Wen Qing chuckled lightly as she started eating her dessert. As the sweet taste filled her mouth she found everything becoming hazy around her. The restaurant faded away. The sounds of Caiyi town were replaced by the quiet sound of wind and a woman's soft voice.

"A-Huan, come say hello to your didi." A woman in GusuLan sect robes, who was very pregnant, said happily. A toddler with honey brown eyes clamoured up onto the bed.

"Didi?" He asked, eyes wide with curiosity.

"Mn. Your didi is in here right now." She said as she touched her stomach. The toddler looked very confused. She smiled and took one of his tiny hands and placed it over her stomach. After a few moments the toddler gasped and looked up at his mother.

"Moved! Didi?!" The toddler asked, suddenly extremely excited. The woman smiled brightly.

"Mn. That's your didi saying hello." She said with a smile. The little toddler was smiling brightly and looked very excited.

"Will Didi stay with me?" The toddler asked hopefully. His mother nodded again and the toddler looked so happy. "When will Didi come out?!" The woman hummed in thought.

"Maybe before your next visit," she said with a gentle smile. The toddler bounced in place in excitement.

"Didi! Come soon!" The toddler talked to the unborn baby in his mother's stomach. She laughed seeing how excited her oldest son was.

"A-Huan. So impatient. You want to see your didi so fast?" She asked in a light teasing tone. The toddler nodded his head emphatically.

"Once Didi is here, Didi will stay with me! Then A-Huan won't be alone anymore!" He announced eagerly, but Wen Qing saw the smile on his mother's face freeze. She looked down at her son as he continued to talk to his didi and encourage him to come out soon. Her eyes became glassy with tears as she watched him, so excited. So excited to not be alone. This was Lan Xichen's mother, when she was pregnant with Lan Wangji. This excited toddler was Lan Xichen.

Wen Qing knew from what she had seen before that Lan Xichen and Lan Wangji did not get to live with their mother. They visited her once a month. Wen Qing hadn't fully processed that it would be like that from birth. Lan Xichen was so excited. So excited to not be alone anymore. It must have hurt so much when Lan Wangji began withdrawing. Wen Qing watched Madam Lan swallow back her tears and smile affectionately at her son.

"A-Huan. I have something special from you, but we have to keep it a secret. Do you know what a secret is?" She whispered to him with a smile on her face. Lan Xichen thought furiously before answering.

"Secret, means not telling." Lan Xichen said thoughtfully. It was rather adorable to see a toddler thinking so seriously. Madam Lan smiled at him.

"My A-Huan is so smart." She cooed as she tickled him, making the toddler squeal with joy. With some difficulty Madam Lan got up and retrieved a small box that looked like it had been set aside. She opened it to reveal a rather familiar looking sweet. Lan Xichen was staring at it in confusion. He looked up at his mother.

"What this?" He asked, pointing at it. Madam Lan smiled mischievously.

"This is my special present for my A-Huan. But we have to keep it a secret. Don't tell anyone." Madam Lan whispered conspiratorially. "Can my A-Huan keep a secret?" she asked. Lan Xichen nodded his head quickly. Madam Lan smiled and handed the small dessert to Lan Xichen, encouraging him to eat it. The tiny Lan Xichen's honey brown eyes went wide as saucers after he took his first bite. He stared at the dessert in his hand like he had just discovered magic. The memory began to fade back into the real world. Wen Qing watched Lan Xichen eating the dessert like it was the greatest thing in the world. Madam Lan gazed at him, her eyes filled with fondness and deep sorrow.