There's an air of anticipation in the room, as if all the adults are preparing themselves for what they sense is going to be hard to hear.
Wei Ying looks over to Lan Huan.
"XiChen-Ge, are you alright? It's okay if you don't want to carry on being here."
The nine year old draws himself up to sit straighter, jutting his chin out with determination. "I want to stay. Anything that involves my Didi concerns me, and even if it's hard listening to you both, I wish to help you."
"Then, thank you, I guess." Wei Ying gives him a bow.
He moves over to sit next to Lan Zhan so that they're both facing everyone, their small, chubby hands clasped tightly together. "Are you ready, Lan Zhan?" There's a wealth of understanding in his brilliant silver eyes, usually sparkling with some kind of mischief, but right now, Lan Zhan has never seen him look so serious before.
"Mn. Do you want me to go first?"
"Um, yeah? If you don't mind."
"Anything for Wei Ying." Lan Zhan gives him a tiny smile of encouragement before taking a deep breath and beginning. "Xiongzhang and I arrived early at Koi tower. I must admit, I was anxious to see Wei Ying again, after so long." His gaze flickers towards his uncle.
It's just for a second, but it's enough to make Lan Qiren sit straighter. It makes him ask, "Did anything happen to prevent you going to Yiling again to check up on A-Ying? Did I have something to do with it?"
Lan Zhan's immediate and open astonishment ticks that box in Lan Qiren's head.
"WangJi," he says sternly, "I hope you feel alright to be honest with us...even with me. I cannot imagine what I was like in your past life, but I would hope that I supported you, even a little bit. However and especially if this wasn't the case, I want to know. Progress cannot happen unless our mistakes are illuminated by the light of knowledge. So I hope you will be unfailingly honest with us today."
Lan Zhan bows his head quietly. "Shufu, if that's what you want, then I must apologise in advance."
"A-Zhan...WangJi, you are not responsible for the actions of others. There is nothing to apologise for, in regard to being honest. I hope the respect you hold for all of us makes revealing the truth a little easier." Lan Qiren strokes his beard thoughtfully, his mind racing. So his doubts about his own character back then...well, in the future of these children's lives are correct. He must have failed them somehow.
"Actually, it is harder," Lan Zhan admits. "I do not wish for you to suffer."
"Dear child, as your wise uncle said, no one is responsible for others. Each person makes a choice, and it's the consequences of their actions that they must live with. But you can think of this as a second chance for all of us. By telling us what we were like to you, we get to choose how to behave differently in this life. So tell us everything with no fears in your heart. We are sturdy cultivators, and have been that for years already. We can take it." Cangse Sanren nods as well, giving Lan Zhan the foundation for a safe space so that he may speak freely.
"Mn. Then, to answer your question, Shufu, when you found out that I had visited Wei Ying in the Burial Mounds, you made me kneel outside your rooms for one day and one night, holding the Discipline Whip aloft."
Lan Qiren had been expecting something bad, but this was a harsh punishment. His indrawn breath is an indication of his shock.
"After that, I was not allowed to leave the Cloud Recesses until Jin RuLan's one month celebration, and only when Xiongzhang argued for my case, I was given permission to go with him."
