Fluffy WangXian Oneshots

Dandelions and Dogs

One fine day, Wei Ying decided he would spend some time in Caiyi Town. He hadn’t had his spicy noodles in a long time now because there was no need; Lan Zhan cooked all his meals now.

Also, he wanted to drink a jar or two of Emperor's Smile and as it was still prohibited in Cloud Recesses, he had to get it himself.

Lan Zhan had given him a purse of silver pieces to spend despite his protests, and Wei Ying had given him sweet kisses instead, and a promise to be careful. Lan Zhan sent two bodyguards with him also, to follow him from afar just in case something happened.

The name of the Yilling Patriarch was still whispered with fear and dread among adults and children alike, so Lan Zhan wasn't going to take any chances. He would have accompanied his husband too, but there had been an impromptu meeting with the local village leader about fruits going missing in their communal orchard.

Caiyi Town was the usual hub of entertainment for Wei Ying. Loud, boisterous and full of energy, it was a far cry from the semi-silence of Cloud Recesses. Wei Ying spent an inordinate amount of time flitting between stalls of food and goods on display, happily buying whatever he desired.

He found a blue jade gentian hair pin that would look simply ravishing on his husband and he had one of the stall owners pack some sweet haws for him to take back for his husband.

He stored everything away in his qiankun pouch and sauntered back, swigging from the last jar of wine. He must have taken a wrong turn somewhere in his bid to get away from the bodyguards, because it wasn’t as if Caiyi Town was far from home, and he really hadn't seen the point of them.

But Wei Ying wasn't frightened...he carried on drinking and walking, hoping someone would turn up, whom he could ask for directions.

It was a beautiful afternoon. The sun was shining warmly on his back, and the scent of wild hyacinths drifting on the summer breeze lightened his mood. Sparrows and starlings sang a song for him. Wild flowers were bursting into colourful life in and amongst the tall grasses all around him as he walked.

As it happened, someone did turn up.

There was a little girl standing on the edge of the trail crying and crying and crying.

Wei Ying looked around but there was no mother nor any other adults lurking by, and now he was a little worried.

It was already late afternoon, and this poor child was apparently lost. She was quite pretty too, big almond shaped eyes with round rosy cheeks and trembling lips.

"What's your name, little one?" Wei Ying asked her kindly. "And where is your mother?"

"Mother is dead." She sobbed.

Wei Ying crouched down and thought about how he could make her feel better. He remembered the sweet haws and pulled them out, smiling when her eyes widened with shock at how good they were.

At least she had stopped crying.

Maybe he could take her back to Cloud Recesses to wait and see what the elders decided about her. Wei Ying didn’t want to leave her waiting on the hilly mountainside by herself. She could get lost or worse, get eaten. Any wild animal could hurt her and she was still a baby to him. Age wise she was perhaps only four or five.

He was just about to pick her up, when he heard the most terrifying sound in his life.

It was a low growl...unmistakably a dog...and it was close by.

Wei Ying froze.

He could not move, his blood feeling like ice in his veins. He wanted to protect this baby but his feet were stuck like glue to the ground. And then from behind him, someone threw a bag over his head and he felt a sharp pain before he blacked out.