Backlash Part 2

Chapter 212: Qi Deviation

Wei Qing was forced to render Lan Wangji unconscious. She had just narrowly stabilized him from his second Qi deviation. If he went into another one too quickly, she wasn't certain she'd be able to do anything to stop it. If Lan Wangji had been in the Cloud Recesses when the first one struck, his condition wouldn't be so precarious. But was Lan Wangji in the Cloud Recesses when he went into qi deviation? No. Because Lan Wangji had flown out of Cloud Recesses like a crazy person the second he discovered that Wei Wuxian was no longer in the Cloud Recesses.

Wei Qing understood the sentiment. She really did, but if Lan Wangji had taken two minutes to inform literally anyone, he wouldn't be in his current condition. Even if he had still qi deviated, he would have had someone with him. Preferably Wei Qing. Who was a doctor and Wei Wuxian's sister. She had the right to know if something had happened to her brother. In a timely manner and not after she was being presented with Lan Wangji in the middle of a qi deviation severe enough to be fatal without medical intervention.

Wei Qing liked Lan Wangji but, as soon as he was healthy enough to survive it, she was going to make him suffer. He was smart enough to realize that running off without informing anyone was stupid. Lan Wangji hadn't been coherent enough to tell them exactly what transpired. Wei Qing hadn't even known anything was wrong until it was time to put A-Yuan down for the night.

With Nuan-er being ill they had decided to have A-Yuan stay with Popo for a bit. Nuan-er, the precious big sister that she was, was worried A-Yuan would be lonely. So even though she was sick and in pain, she asked Lan Wangji to spend a lot of time with A-Yuan. Lan Wangji had obliged her. He spent almost the entire day with A-Yuan. Using the time that A-Yuan napped to do work.

Lan Wangji had left to share the evening meal with Wei Wuxian in the Jingshi. This had been the plan Lan Wangji shared with them when he brought A-Yuan over that morning. He'd promised to return to put A-Yuan to bed. When he didn't return Wei Qing had been worried that something had happened with Nuan-er.

Wei Qing had gone to the Jingshi and found a disaster. Trunks and drawers were left open. Their contents spilling out onto the floor. Wei Qing had lived with Wei Wuxian at his worst. Wei Wuxian was a messy and chaotic person by nature. In the Burial Mounds there were times when Wei Wuxian had been half manic, delirious with sleep deprivation. His space had reflected his mental state.

What Wei Qing found in the Jingshi was different. Despite the chaos and mess, there was actually a clear pattern to the chaos around Wei Wuxian. She would absolutely expect him to leave a drawer or box open, but she would expect them to be tipped over. Nor would the mess be so... everywhere.

Wei Wuxian created mess as he worked and lived. The chaos should be centred around the spaces where he spent the most time. On the table he worked at. On the floor on either side of where he was sitting. Near Nuan-er's bed where he would have spent a lot of time watching her.

Similarly the types of mess would reflect what he would use in a given space. Talismans might end up anywhere, but the other things? Wei Wuxian would not have scattered clothes throughout the entire Jingshi. He'd have dropped them wherever he changed. Wei Qing was not certain how Lan Wangji put up with it, but that was not the point at the moment.

The point was that the Jingshi looked like someone had searched through every nook and cranny. Searched it like they didn't care if anyone knew they had searched it. It almost looked like they had deliberately left the space in disaster. The Jingshi was completely trashed and no one was inside of it. Wei Qing hadn't known what to make of it, but she was worried.

Wei Qing immediately went to the Hanshi. She hoped she would find Lan Wangji, Wei Wuxian, and Nuan-er there speaking with Lan Xichen. That would be the best case scenario. However, if they weren't there, then Lan Xichen was still the next person she needed to speak to. As it turned out, only Lan Xichen was in the Hanshi, and he had no idea that anything was wrong until Wei Qing arrived.