Fluffy WangXian Oneshots Book Two

Come Back To Gusu With Me Part 15

Dusk falls between one moment and the next, painting the skies in lilacs and lavender with an airy brushing of pinky hues. Yunmeng is beautiful all the time, Jiang Cheng thinks, but at night, it truly comes alive. A scattering of stars begins glittering above him as if someone has shattered a porcelain teapot up there and just left the shards to shine. Of the now four major clans, they're in the most southern region, and it is still warm in the evenings.

Jiang Cheng has formed a habit of walking around Lotus Pier in the twilight hours, and he enjoys quiet solitude. These past few nights, a peacefulness has settled deeply in his bones, and he won't admit it, but it is most definitely because Wei WuXian isn't here. There's no worrying about where he is or what he's doing, and Jiang Cheng's guilt at that flares up in the back of his mind. He misses Wei WuXian too, and that's the opposite of the relief that blankets him because of his absence. Thinking of Wei WuXian makes his stomach bubble up with anxiety, and so he banishes him from his mind, taking the opportunity to breathe in lungfuls of fragrant air. The lotus flowers are dormant now and will begin to grow and flourish nearer the springtime, but the warmer temperature in Yunmeng allows other scented flowers to bloom. Jasmine and camellia flowers are heavily traded for wedding decorations, and the local temples always need a steady supply.

The last walk before he retires for the night is a final check in with his responsibilities and has another advantage in that Jiang Cheng can figure out what he has to do when he wakes up, and he can form a coherent plan and make a list of whatever needs his attention on the following day.

Tonight, he is visiting one of the lakes that has been slow to recuperate after the war. In the beginning, after their return, Jiang Cheng had had to remove hundreds of water ghouls who were the remains of those who perished in the Sunshot Campaign. Their growing number of disciples had helped, but Wei WuXian's point blank refusal to assist had hurt him terribly. It was like Wei WuXian was trying to drown himself in wine and, again, make the Jiang Clan look bad in front of others. The secondary effect was that if Wei WuXian continued to disobey and undermine Jiang Cheng with his uncooperativeness, the word would spread that the Zongzhu was unable to control his Head Disciple.

This repeatedly bad attitude permeated their every interaction, and for a time, Jiang Cheng refused to talk to him because he just couldn't understand why Wei WuXian was being so difficult. A-Jie kept telling him it was a phase and would be over soon, but it's coming up to a year now, and there has been no sign of improvement. In fact, Jiang Cheng would swear that Wei WuXian is just getting worse.

What happened to all their huge optimistic plans? They had so much to look forward to, even during the Sunshot Campaign. Jiang Cheng fondly remembers sitting around the campfire and talking with Wei WuXian. He spoke about how he wanted to make the Swords Hall even bigger, wider than it was because of various issues they had training in the winter months when it wasn't feasible to be outside, especially for the younger disciples. Looking back now, Jiang Cheng recalls Wei WuXian humming his approval but not contributing much else. So maybe it had been just him making all those plans. He hadn't thought that he would be doing the actual work all by himself, though.

Jiang Cheng kicks at a stone, annoyed with himself. His mind seems intent on thinking about his adopted brother tonight. Luckily, he hears voices nearby, and it's enough of a distraction that he starts listening to what they're saying instead.

"Bofu, it doesn't look like there's anything growing in there."

He can make out the silhouette of a child, and he's obviously talking to his uncle. A splash confirms that their presence is close to the edge of the lake. This particular area has been slow in regrowth, and if Jiang Cheng is honest, he is slightly worried about it. There's not much they can do in the face of the coming winter, and once spring arrives, they'll get a better idea of how much replanting they need to do.