Backlash Part 2

Chapter 238: Koi Tower - Wei Qing

Lan Xichen led the way into Koi tower. It was somewhat of a relief to Wei Qing that she could stand behind him with the other disciples. She was almost certain that Lan Xichen was thinking of it in a more protective capacity. Not hiding her, but not drawing attention to her either. Wei Qing could appreciate that, but mostly she was grateful for the cluster of white robes that could remind her she was not here alone.

Wei Qing has been to Koi Tower several times in her life. In the past she attended discussion conferences often. Praised for her brilliance in the liberal arts even more than she was praised for her medical skills, which were by no means modest. She spent conferences smoothing over insults both implied and overt. Wen Rouhan had long since deemed himself too powerful to care who he might offend and Wei Qing had dutifully striven to compensate for that deficiency.

A lifetime ago, before he launched his war of subjugation, there had been a great deal of speculation that she might be named heir in place of Wen Rouhan's sons. There was a time when Wei Qing had even dared to want that. She had been proud of her sect and her ancestors. Wen Mao was a noble and righteous cultivator who taught that every kindness should be returned. He loved his family fiercely. Of his nine daughters only two of them were married out of the sect. Both of them had gone to their father to request it, because of their strong feelings for partners that would not have been able to marry into the sect.

Wei Qing had felt such pride in her ancestors. Their accomplishments, their devotion to their family, the noble tenets on which they were founded. She clung to those lessons and stories when members of the main family would be particularly cruel and mean spirited. When she learned that she was strongly favoured as a candidate for succession, she had been hopeful. There was a future beyond the problems she could see within her sect. A future that didn't involve ignoring the behaviour that didn't match the tenets set out by their ancestors. She could hold her tongue and persevere, and when she ascended the throne she could lead them back to the principles the main family disregarded.

Maybe she could have. If Wen Rouhan had simply remained a cruel tyrant of a sect leader and not started a war of conquest. Wei Qing and her remaining family may have abandoned their ancestors name, but Wen Rouhan was the one who destroyed their legacy.

Wei Qing felt a chill settle into her bones as she ascended the stairs. Discussion conferences at Koi Tower had always been exhausting and uncomfortable. Wei Qing felt a wry smirk quirk her lips. Uncomfortable... Uncomfortable, like enduring Jin Guangshan's lecherous gaze. Uncomfortable, like being accosted in an empty corridor and narrowly avoiding an assault. Uncomfortable, like being burned alive in front of the entire cultivation world. It was perhaps not surprising that she didn't like Koi Tower very much.

The doors to the banquet hall loomed above as they climbed the last of the stairs. The sounds of muffled voices carried from behind the closed doors. Not clearly enough to discern what was being said, but one particularly loud voice was clear enough that Wei Qing could identify Chifeng-zun. The servant who had escorted them to the banquet hall hovered before the door. He glanced at Lan Xichen a few times, clearly uncertain about whether it was worse to interrupt the discussion taking place, or leave a sect leader and his entourage waiting outside.

"Do not worry about announcing us. Our attendance is expected." Lan Xichen said with a kind smile to the flustered servant. Wei Qing stared forward calmly instead of snorting a laugh. It was not a lie. Nie Mingjue expected them, at the very least. The Jins absolutely should be expecting them, although Wei Qing doubted they particularly wanted them there.

"Ah, of course Zewu-jun." The servant said with a deferential bow.

Lan Xichen opened the doors to the banquet hall himself. Leading the Lan entourage inside with no announcement or warning. The doors swung open and the voices of the gathered cultivators washed over them. The banquet hall was not as full as Wei Qing expected it to be. She scanned the gathering, noticing the obvious gaps where sects that had been in attendance the day before were now absent. By her count, nearly a third of the minor sects were missing.