That evening's banquet was subdued.
There is an air of melancholy heavy and depressing upon the adults, though the same cannot be said for the little ones. They're seated in the centre around their usual table, and Wei Ying looks around because Wen Qing and Wen Ning have yet to join them, which is unusual.
The table is quiet for once, with the Jin children also missing, so only Nie MingJue, Nie Huaisang, Lan Huan, Lan Zhan and Wei Ying, plus Jiang YanLi and Jiang Cheng are seated. Wen Xu and Wen Chao are noticeably absent as well.
Jiang YanLi smiles kindly at Wei Ying.
"My father said he knows your parents," she says quietly.
Lan Zhan straightens his back immediately, grabbing Wei Ying's hand under the table as if Jiang Fengmian is going to pop out of nowhere and take him. Wei Ying squeezes their joined hands, smiling politely back at her. There's not much he can say to her about that.
"I was wondering if perhaps, we can walk through the gardens tomorrow?" She looks at her baby brother who is caught up in trying to use his noodles like a face mask, smearing them all over his cheeks. She quickly and efficiently wipes his face and hands and puts the chopsticks correctly between his fingers, looking up once to make sure her mother hasn't noticed.
Wei Ying follows her gaze and finds that she has nothing to worry about; Madam Yu is trying to catch Wen Zhuliu's eyes unsuccessfully, since the man is ignoring her as if she doesn't exist. His attention is fully on following Wen Ruohan as he strides to his seat, appearing later than everyone else when he should be the first to arrive.
"It's important," Jiang YanLi adds, her amethyst eyes intense for once.
"Tomorrow, the archery contest begins," Lan Zhan says with a challenge in his voice. He does not want Wei Ying to go anywhere near the person that used to be his sister.
He knows she and Wei Ying had a special relationship, that they cared for one another deeply as true siblings ought to. But he thinks about his own older brother and wonders what his Xiongzhang would do if Lan Zhan was being punished periodically with a spiritual weapon? He hopes his brother would do something about it, if it ever happens.
But Jiang YanLi, while there's no doubt that she made every attempt to make Wei Ying feel better AFTERWARDS, what was the point? Why didn't she ever stand up for him to her parents? Why did she never bring up the injustice of punishing a minor with a terrible, formidable weapon as Zidian?
In Lan Zhan's mind, she is just as guilty as Madam Yu and there's no way he's letting the Jiangs get close enough to his Wei Ying to brainwash him into feeling guilty. True, they have no hold over him in this lifetime, but Lan Zhan has learned his lesson.
He knows that both Madam Yu and Jiang Cheng blamed Wei Ying for the attack on Lotus Pier, saying that it was due to Wei Ying 'running after Lan WangJi to save him' and 'riling up Wen Chao' that their home was destroyed in that last life.
But after the Cloud Recesses was burned to the ground, Lotus Pier was always, always going to be next, no matter what anyone thought. It made sense as the best military strategy, regardless of any one single person's actions.
Wei Ying distracts him from his thoughts as he writes characters on the back of his hand.
Wei Ying: ShiJie- I mean, Jiang YanLi definitely has something she wants to tell me. I think we should meet with her, just to find out. Don't worry, Lan Zhan. You'll be with me, won't you?
"Mn." Lan Zhan nods. But he doesn't like this one bit, as Wei Ying agrees to meet her tomorrow.
All the Wen children arrive then, quickly taking their seats. Everyone has followed the same seating arrangements as the first day, and so Wen Qing sits herself down next to Wei Ying and grabs his hand. She begins writing on his palm immediately.
