baby it's cold outside (WangXian FF)

3

They landed in Beijing International Airport, and collected their baggage when Wei Wuxian informed them that they would continue the journey with a smaller plane which departed only once a week because the location was so remote. So if they missed this one, they would need to charter their own plane or other accommodation.

"I wonder if there's hell on earth. If so, then this must be the place." Shen Qingqiu sighed for the nth time ever since they landed on the small airstrip in the middle of nowhere, and Hua Cheng was off, taking care of their rental car. "And of course it has to be with you." He poked Wei Wuxian's arm and then sat on the top of their luggage. "I don't know why I have to do this, when I could cash my inheritance out and go to the remote island, sipping margaritas, surrounded by hot girls and guys in bare minimum clothes, and let you do whatever you want to do."

Shen Qingqiu was actually the only heir to a big business magnate, Shen Jun, who left everything to his only grandson. And yet, he decided to open his own publishing company and then became Wei Wuxian's manager – practically babysitting him – and left all the inheritance to be taken care of by Hua Cheng, their other childhood friend. And now, the three of them were stuck in the middle of nowhere because of Wei Wuxian's impromptu journey.

"Because you love me?" Wei Wuxian chuckled, then pointed to his outer coat. "And because you want to show off that… thing?"

He was wearing a limited edition bright green fake fur coat that was so huge, it almost swallowed him. With his tall and thin body – well he was shorter than Hua Cheng and Wei Wuxian, since both men were more than six feet tall while he was only six feet – he looked like a model with his long silky black hair.

"This is a Limited Edition coat by Nie Huaisang which he made exclusively for me. Limited as in only 1 in the world. He said that the dye alone caused the plant to be extinct so he wouldn't be able to make another green color." He scoffed and hugged the coat tenderly like a lover.

"Yeah, yeah, we all know that you're the chaebol here, but green? Really? On the bright side, we would easily find you if you happen to get lost in the mountains. Hell you can use the coat for bed if needed." Wei Wuxian chuckled. He knew Shen Qingqiu loved fashion and he had a particular taste that only Nie Huaisang could accommodate.

Thankfully before Shen Qingqiu could retort, Hua Cheng came with their car – a van – which should be able to fit all their luggage and some more.

They packed their bags and then Wei Wuxian sent Hua Cheng the coordinates to their destination, which would take around an hour according to the GPS.

"Damn, I wonder if you actually want to disappear, judging from the distance we have to take. Twenty hours by plane and still another hour to get to the destination? Now you make me wonder what the hell are you up to, Wei Wuxian."

"I think my great grandfather was so hurt that he wanted to put this much distance between himself and the place where he worked. Imagine moving that far away when there was no plane. Wonder what caused him to do that."

"I smell a great story here, what do you think, Hua Cheng?" Shen Qingqiu spoke to Hua Cheng, who was actually a man with a few words. "Maybe your great grandpa ran off with the daughter of his employer, and they looked for him to be beheaded… oohh, sounds exciting. You should do some research and write about your great grandpa, who knows it will be your next best seller. A tragic love story between two people with different castes…"

"Sometimes I wonder if you're the one who should be the author, Qiuqiu." Hua Cheng laughed at Shen Qingqiu's wild imagination. 

"I wonder the same." Wei Wuxian laughed and they talked mindlessly about some conspiracy theory along the way, and soon after they arrived at their destination.

Their destination was a charming little village which probably only had a few hundred people living in it. The view of the mountain, and the lushness of the forest were proof that the people here were not like the big city people. 

The street was clean and perfect without any damage, and the houses – although simple – were also clean and sturdy. No sign of poverty everywhere, but also no sign that this was actually a popular tourist destination.

True, there was a souvenir store, a bakery, a small restaurant, and few other unidentified businesses. But there was also this peaceful feeling of coming home to a place you didn't even know existed.

"I need a drink."

"Where should we sleep?"

Shen Qingqiu and Hua Cheng spoke in tune, and Wei Wuxian smiled. It was typical of them, which priorities they had. But Wei Wuxian already prepared everything, so he pointed to Hua Cheng the way to their lodging.

They soon arrived at the beautiful bed and breakfast – modeled like ancient China mini palace – and entered the door to be greeted by a petite woman dressed in bright colored Chinese traditional dress, a knee-length qipao in green.

"Hi, welcome! Do you have a reservation? Because we are fully booked!" She bowed to them and smiled.

"Yes, we have reservations for three rooms under the name of Wei." Wei Wuxian smiled back at the woman and glanced at her name tag. It said Mianmian.

"Ah, yes Mr. Wei. You've booked and paid for the Phoenix Wing until New Year. Please follow me, we have prepared for your arrival. My name is Mianmian and this is Yuanyuan and Jingyi. They will help you with your luggage." She pointed at the two adolescent boys who appeared out of nowhere. They were also wearing qipaos and they easily took the luggage like they weighed nothing.

"Follow us, Mr. Wei and companies." The boy named Jingyi winked at him and walked first, followed by Yuanyuan.

The walk to the Phoenix Wing was not long, and Wei Wuxian was pleased to see that as per his request, the separate wing was secluded from the other wing, and there was a small pavilion in the middle of a very clear pond filled with koi fish and lotus flowers.

The whole building had three rooms and a joint living room and kitchen, and it was like an apartment by itself overlooking the pond.

"This is… beautiful!" Shen Qingqiu opened one of the rooms and he threw himself into the soft bed with wooden furniture and thin veil covering the whole bed, just like the ancient China movies.

Wei Wuxian and Hua Cheng took the other rooms and Wei Wuxian tipped the boys generously. The boys widened their eyes in surprise and said their thanks while bowing politely.

"No worries boys." Wei Wuxian chuckled. "So, tell me, is there any bar here? My friend is in dire need to have some alcohol, otherwise he would get nightmares."

"Fuck you!" Shen Qingqiu yelled from his room.

One of the boys, Jingyi, laughed, and then he told Wei Wuxian that the hotel had an adjoined bar for Westerners, and they also served breakfast, lunch and dinner there. The price was already included in their hotel reservation, as per Wei Wuxian's request. He didn't want to bother with food unless it's urgent, and if he was bored he could always cook his specialty chili con carne.

"Then, we'll leave you guys to rest. Please don't hesitate to call us if you need anything." The boys once again bowed politely before they turned around and left.

"Good, thank you very much boys."