Lan Ying - Gusu's Third Jade {permanent hiatus, no longer being updated}

Chapter Six

~The Next Day~

Lan Qiren had informed the Jiang group that they cannot enter without their pass, finally giving up knowing that they could not go against the sect leader the Jiang group left to try and find a hotel and get their pass, so they are able to enter. Lan Qiren had let them in the next morning. Lan Ying and Lan Zhan had both gone back to their room before they had to go down to dinner.

The two were walking to the dining hall for dinner. On the way there they were stopped by Lan Qiren requesting to see Lan Zhan after dinner and for Lan Ying to show the Jiang guests to their rooms and inform them of some of the most important rules.

~~~

After dinner

~~~

"Please follow me, I will take you to your room. " Lan Ying escorted the group from Yunmeng Jiang towards the guest area. "Please pay attention to the rules as they are important, and you will be learning them in classes. Females are allowed to converse with males but please act appropriately. Also limit any noise as you can't yell or cause excessive noise in Cloud Recess. Running around is prohibited. The rest of the rules will be explained tomorrow during your first day's study."

"My name is Jiang Yanli, my brother is Jiang Cheng, courtesy Wanyin. We thank Maiden Lan for the reminder."

"I thought that female and male disciples were prohibited from interacting with each other?" Jiang Cheng questioned, intrigued with the new information.

Lan Ying chuckled, "Not that much. While we are not prohibited from interacting with the opposite gender, however we are expected that any interactions are appropriate and civil. Meaning, there's no excessive interaction, at least more than what is expected."

"Jiang-Xiong!" Nie Huaisang called Jiang Cheng loudly as he runs toward the group.

"Nie-gongzi, no running nor yelling in the Cloud Recesses. You have been here enough times to know the rules".

"Ahaha... Miss Lan" Nie Huaisang nervously saluted Lan Ying. "I'm sorry, don't tell Second Young Master Lan, please?"

"Just don't do it again, Nie-gongzi."

"All right, all right."

"Now to continue with our tour. This is the area that all Yunmeng Jiang's male disciples will be staying, Nie-gongzi can help you to settle in and locate anything that you may need. Please be aware that the curfew is 9 in the evening, and you will have to wake up by 5 in the morning. Breakfast will be at 6 and the opening ceremony will be held at 7 tomorrow morning. Female disciples, please follow me, I'll take you to your dorm as it is in a different area."

"Okay. Thanks for the help, Maiden Lan." Jiang Yanli bowed before walking off with the rest of the female disciples.

"No problem, Maiden Jiang."

~~~

With Nie Huaisang and Jiang Cheng

~~~

"Huaisang-Xiong, how have you been?" Jiang Cheng asked once the groups had all sat down in the common area.

"Hahaha... My brother really is going to kill me if I don't pass this year." He replied laughing dryly at the thought.

"He won't break your legs or kill you if you graduate this year? I thought that he would do that if you don't pick up a sword."

"You don't know how difficult it is to study here do you?"

"Is it really that bad?" One of the Yunmeng Jiang juniors piped up.

"Well, I'm sure that studying at Lotus Pier would be a much more enjoyable experience than here" Nie Huaisang whined, remembering every year he had spent studying here.

"Of course, it would, who would want to wake up at 5am every day and go to bed at 9pm?" Jiang Cheng snorted remembering just two of the rules. In Lotus Pier, disciples and guest were free to wake up and go to sleep whenever if they kept up their studies and jobs that they might have. Life at Lotus Pier will always be more fun.

"Well, Gusu can't be that bad right?"

"Jiang-Xiong, listen to me. Cloud Recesses is so different from Lotus Pier. In this place, do remember that there is one person that under no circumstance should you provoke them."

"Who? Lan Qiren? I don't know anyone that couldn't be provoked besides that old man."

"No. Not that old man. The one you need to be careful of is his nephew also his proudest disciple, named Lan Zhan."

"Lan Zhan? As in the Two Jades of Lan, Lan Wangji?"

"What other Lan Zhan is there? Yes, that's the one. Oh gosh, he's the same age as you and I, but he's so stiff and strict! Worse than his uncle."

Jiang Cheng grimaced, "Ah yes, we meet that one earlier." 

"Lan Wangji? Why?"

"We lost our pass, and we couldn't find an inn, so we thought of getting to Cloud Recesses earlier. But at the gate, we weren't allowed to come in. Then we meet Lan Wangji and Maiden Lan. He insists that we can't go in even though we said that we lost our pass and can't find an inn. I swear that guy doesn't have any shred of humanity."

"That's just how he is with people he doesn't know."

"By the way Huaisang-Xiong, you seem to be really close with Maiden Lan. What was that about?"

"Do you think I have a death with or something?" Nie Huaisang looked with his eyes wide. "Do you not know who she is?" 

"What?"

"Do you know who Maiden Lan is?"

Jiang Cheng shot him back with a ridiculous look, "Of course I know! She is Lan Ying, right? She is the one who is said to be a powerful cultivator on par with Lan Wangji and a genius inventor. Only an idiot who didn't know her."

"Yes, however she is also Lan Wangji's fiancée."

Jiang Cheng's jaw could have dropped onto the floor with his new revelation. "Fiancée? Him? How could someone so kind be engaged to a person with the personality of a stone wall?"

"They have been betrothed since childhood."

"How can she withstand being engaged with that statue?"

Nie Huaisang sighs, "Well, they grew up together. One could wonder."