Backlash Part 1

Chapter 163: I'll Do It Myself

The second Lan Xichen said 'Dafan' Wei Wuxian wanted to jump on his sword. No waiting. No meetings. No back up. No delay. That was his family on that mountain. A family he had been aching to rescue throughout two and a half years of war.

Wei Wuxian didn't actually process the details about rescuing Nie Mingjue. About Wen Qing breaking him out of the Flame Palace and smuggling him to Dafan. As soon as Wei Wuxian's brain heard someone of authority mention taking Dafan, Wei Wuxian was ready to bolt out the door. Lan Wangji did manage to slow Wei Wuxian down. A calm hand on Wei Wuxian's shoulder held him in place long enough to actually process everything Lan Xichen had said. Recognize all of the words and the question that he should probably answer before running out of camp.

"So you are going to present this today? And I get to cow people into cooperating if they start to take too long to make a decision?" Wei Wuxian verified. Lan Xichen hesitated slightly.

'That's not exactly what I said, but it's too accurate for me to really correct you.' Was written all over Lan Xichen's face.

"The meeting will be in an hour." Lan Xichen settled for just ensuring Wei Wuxian would attend the meeting. Wei Wuxian frowned a bit. Impatient that he would have to wait so long before leaving.

"We will be there." Lan Wangji interjected. Wei Wuxian barely heard the last of the pleasantries between the two brothers. His mind was already plotting the time it would take to get to Dafan. Then the realization of exactly what he would find in Dafan hit him. His family. The family that had adopted him, and taken his name in the Burial Mounds, was alive in Dafan right now.

'A-Yuan...' Wei Wuxian's mind stuttered to a halt. Wei Wuxian did the math in his head. Wen Yuan would be a year old right now. Were his parents still alive, or was he already an orphan being looked after by his grandmother? Wei Wuxian's heart ached. It had been awhile since he thought about the little boy he had claimed as his own. Wei Wuxian ached to see his face. To hold him, and squish his adorable cheeks.

"Wei Ying." Lan Wangji's soft voice brought Wei Wuxian back to the present. Wei Wuxian blinked as he refocused on the man in front of him.

"Lan Zhan... It's Dafan. It's..." Wei Wuxian struggled for the words to summarize everything he was feeling in that moment. Anticipation, excitement, anxiety, fear, and all of it at the same time. Lan Wangji pulled Wei Wuxian into an embrace.

"We will go. We will protect them." Lan Wangji assured. Something not clearly defined but understood, was that no matter what happened in the coming meeting Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji would be leaving for Dafan today.

Wei Wuxian was not patient when he walked into the tent full of sect leaders and their right hands. Keeping himself still, relatively speaking, for an hour before the meeting began did not help the situation. So Wei Wuxian felt that the fact he held on through an additional hour of bickering once the meeting began should be commended.

Lan Xichen's firm explanations were supported by Jiang Yanli's skilful ability to talk people into a corner. Wei Wuxian might have appreciated the harmony of their teamwork on a different day. If they weren't wasting time that could be spent rescuing innocent people. If Jiang Yanli and Lan Xichen's soft voices and coordinated efforts worked a little bit faster than answering every question and talking circles around every challenge.

A part of Wei Wuxian even believed the two of them would eventually be successful, but that was the problem. Eventually. Eventually might have been in another hour, or another three hours. If Wei Wuxian was not already a bundle of nerves at the start of this meeting he might have had the patience to sit calmly to the end of it. Maybe. It was at least a remote possibility that he could feasibly sit through a meeting that long. If it wasn't the safety of people he called family on the line. Wei Wuxian was out of patience.

"This was a waste of time." Wei Wuxian announced in the midst of the discussion. "I'm going to Dafan."

Before anyone could comment Wei Wuxian left the tent with Lan Wangji on his heels. There was a burst of raised voices from the tent behind them, but Wei Wuxian wasn't listening anymore. Wei Wuxian mounted Suibian, but paused before taking off.

"Lan Zhan..." Wei Wuxian began, his voice much quieter than it was in the tent. All his reasons for doing this were stuck in his throat. Wei Wuxian wanted to explain. He wanted to explain he wasn't just being reckless, or arrogant. He wanted to explain that he needed to do this. Explain that he couldn't keep waiting for the sect leaders to decide to rescue Nie Mingjue, to rescue the innocent people in Dafan.

"Wei Ying. I know." Lan Wangji said, gripping Wei Wuxian's hand. Wei Wuxian locked eyes with Lan Wangji and felt something in him relax. Lan Wangji understood. He wasn't trying to stop him or talk him out of this. Lan Wangji gave Wei Wuxian's hand a reassuring squeeze before he mounted Bichen. One more shared look between them and then they flew for Dafan.

As much as Wei Wuxian would have liked to fly to Dafan without stopping, it wasn't a realistic option. It was too far away. So Wei Wuxian resigned himself to having to stop at an inn that evening. They were in territory controlled by the allied sects, which meant they could actually rent a room without worrying about being recognised.

Wei Wuxian was anxious and unsettled the entire time. Lan Wangji allowed him to pace and fidget. Periodically prodding him to eat. It took a few hours to actually get a full portion of food into him, but Lan Wangji made no mention of it. Once he was satisfied Wei Wuxian had gotten enough food, Lan Wangji pulled out his guqin. It took another hour for the music's calming effects to settle Wei Wuxian enough to be able to consider sleeping.

Lan Wangji held Wei Wuxian close and tried to not think about what would happen when they reached Dafan. Even if the sect leaders had finally reached a decision, the troops they put together would not be able to move as quickly as Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji. The two of them would arrive first. Maybe backup would arrive, maybe it would not. In either case the start of battle would be just the two of them.

If Chifeng-zun was healthy enough, he might join once the fighting started, but there was no guarantee. It was risky. The two of them trying to take Dafan on their own. For anyone else it would be suicide, but Wei Wuxian brought an army with him wherever he went. The question was whether that would be enough to confront the forces in Dafan.

Lan Wangji took steady breaths as he forced himself to relax. He would not ask Wei Wuxian to stay his hand. Wei Wuxian did not speak much about losing the family who adopted his name. Lan Wangji knew they had died at the hands of the cultivation world. He had pieced together roughly what happened to them, but Wei Wuxian did not speak of it often.

Wei Wuxian had watched them die once. Lan Wangji knew it haunted him. He was being given the chance to help them. The chance to protect them early. Maybe enough to protect them after the war as well. Lan Wangji would no ask Wei Wuxian to hold back and wait. They were his family and he could do nothing but come to their aid. So Wei Wuxian would go, and Lan Wangji would go with him.

Lan Wangji had long ago chosen Wei Wuxian. Wherever his Love went, Lan Wangji would follow. The choice had long since been made. Lan Wangji did not need to think about possible consequences or the opinions of others, because next to Wei Wuxian none of it mattered. If no backup was following them, Wei Wuxian would have to use the Yin Hufu. Wei Wuxian didn't want to use it. He wasn't satisfied with his adjustments. He was still afraid of it and what using it would mean for the future. That wouldn't stop Wei Wuxian from doing whatever was necessary to protect the people he loved.