Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
The late afternoon sun slanted lazily over the small courtyard of Puqi Shrine, painting the old wooden beams in a warm golden light. The scent of boiling vegetables and something vaguely… indescribable… drifted out from the modest kitchen as it curling into the cool air.
Xie Lian hummed softly as he worked. His sleeves rolled neatly to his elbows, hair tied back so it wouldn’t get in the way. The old pot on the stove bubbled steadily and he stirred with the same patience and focus as if he were making a royal banquet. The mismatched vegetables, wilted greens and somewhat questionable cuts of meat told a different story.
Behind him, Hua Cheng sat on a low stool. His one leg stretched out, the other bent and elbow resting casually over his knee. He watched Xie Lian with quiet fondness but the fondness was currently buried under a very visible deadpan glare. His single eye, sharp as a blade was fixed on the figure tied to a post a few feet away.
Qi Rong, bound in thick ropes like a particularly noisy sack of trouble..was doing his best to make the whole shrine shake with his voice. “LET ME OUT, YOU DEMON SPAWNED BASTARD!” Qi Rong snarled while jerking against the ropes. “WHO TIES UP THEIR OWN FAMILY?! XIE LIAN! I’M TALKING TO YOU!”
Hua Cheng’s jaw flexed. His fingers twitched like he was restraining himself from tossing Qi Rong into the next province.
“San Lang” Xie Lian said gently over his shoulder. “Please ignore him. I’ll talk to him in a moment.”
Hua Cheng’s gaze slid back to Xie Lian and softening instantly. “Gege, ignoring him is easy. Not breaking his neck is harder.”
“San Lang..” Xie Lian chided with a small smile. “You can’t just..”
A particularly colorful string of insults from Qi Rong cut him off.
“… I could just.” Hua Cheng muttered darkly.
Xie Lian stirred the pot one last time and began ladling the contents into a worn clay bowl. The 'stew' sloshed thickly, the broth cloudy with…something. To Xie Lian, it was perfectly fine. Carrying the steaming bowl carefully, Xie Lian walked over to where Qi Rong was tied. His voice softened in concern. “..You must be hungry” he said with an earnest smile. “You haven’t eaten since this morning.”
Qi Rong recoiled like Xie Lian was offering him poison. “You think I’d eat your swill?!” he sneered. “You want me dead, is that it? Trying to assassinate me with soup?!”
“It’s not soup” Xie Lian corrected cheerfully. “It’s stew.”
Hua Cheng’s lips twitched into a smirk. He rose slowly from his seat, the movement fluid and deliberate, like a predator circling prey.
“Gege” Hua Cheng drawled, stepping closer. “You’re wasting your kindness. Let me handle this.”
Before Xie Lian could protest, Hua Cheng reached out and gently took the bowl from his hands. His touch was light..almost reverent with Xie Lian. The moment he turned toward Qi Rong, his entire demeanor shifted into something sharp and dangerous.
“Open your mouth.” Hua Cheng ordered as his voice low and velvety..yet carrying the weight of a command no sane person would disobey.
Qi Rong glared defiantly. “And if I don’t?!”
He didn’t finish. Hua Cheng grabbed him by the jaw and tilting his head back with a grip that looked deceptively casual but could have snapped bones if he wanted. With his other hand, he tipped the bowl and poured a generous spoonful straight in. Qi Rong sputtered violently, coughing and choking. “BLEGH! WHAT- WHAT IS THAT?!”
“Dinner” Hua Cheng said, still holding his jaw in place. “Be grateful. Gege made it for you himself.”
“I- URGH! YOU!!” Another spoonful.
“You’ve been screaming for hours. That burns energy” Hua Cheng continued smoothly, his tone almost mocking. “You wouldn’t want to pass out before I get to hear more of your charming voice, would you?”
Xie Lian stood off to the side as his expression caught somewhere between exasperation and reluctant amusement. “San Lang… you don’t have to force feed him.”
Hua Cheng shot him a sideways glance, his eye warm again when it landed on Xie Lian. “Gege, you went through the trouble of cooking. It’d be rude for him not to eat.”
Qi Rong made a strangled noise, halfway between outrage and despair as another spoonful was shoved into his mouth. His eyes watered. “THIS TASTES LIKE.. LIKE!”
“Like the heavens are punishing you for existing?” Hua Cheng offered helpfully. Xie Lian sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “San Lang…”
Hua Cheng’s smirk deepened and the next thing Qi Rong knew, the bowl was empty. Hua Cheng set it down neatly on a nearby crate as if he’d just finished serving tea instead of committing culinary warfare. “There” Hua Cheng said while dusting off his hands. “Wasn’t so hard.”
Qi Rong’s head lolled back dramatically against the post. “I think I’m dying.”
“Not yet” Hua Cheng said with a razor edged smile. “If you were, I’d know.”
Xie Lian stepped forward and checking Qi Rong’s pulse out of genuine concern. “He’ll be fine. But San Lang… maybe next time, let him eat on his own?”
“Next time, I’ll make sure there’s no next time.” Hua Cheng replied under his breath.
When Xie Lian turned away to clean the bowl, Hua Cheng followed after him, the storm in his expression already gone. “You cooked” Hua Cheng said softly once they were back in the kitchen. “Yes..” Xie Lian replied, rinsing the pot. “It’s not much, but I thought..”
“It’s perfect, Gege” Hua Cheng interrupted, leaning lightly against the counter. His gaze softened. “San Lang…” Xie Lian murmured. “You don’t have to flatter me.”
“I’m not flattering you” Hua Cheng said, his voice low and certain. “Anything Gege makes is perfect."
Xie Lian blinked at him then huffed a quiet laugh despite himself. “...Thank you..”
“I'm being honest..” Hua Cheng replied with a slow grin.
Outside, Qi Rong’s voice rose again, hoarse but still loud. “I’M NEVER EATING HERE AGAIN! DO YOU HEAR ME?!”
Hua Cheng glanced toward the annoying yelled and his smile sharpening again. “I could fix that.”
“San Lang!” Xie Lian said quickly, half laughing, half scolding. Hua Cheng chuckled and reaching over to brush a stray lock of hair from Xie Lian’s face. “Fine, fine. I’ll behave. For now...”
