Fluffy WangXian Oneshots Book Two

Come Back To Gusu With Me Part 23

MingJue is staring hard at his little brother, who is definitely hiding behind his fan.

"A-Jue, be kind," XiChen says lightly, finding the whole situation rather amusing. He's always been delighted by the obvious love between the Nie brothers, despite the age gap among other vast differences, but also endeared by their dynamic.

To him, it is astonishing how the differences in personalities make for a variety of tones in sibling relationships, his own, a case in point with WangJi, and of course, their current problem, that of Jiang WanYin and Wei WuXian.

The three of them share one last tea session before XiChen goes back to the Cloud Recesses, leaving the headache of the Jiang Heir here.

"Your hand slipped, huh?" MingJue growls at Huaisang. He's going to be persistent, then.

"Ahuh." Huaisang's eyes are widely innocent-looking.

From this vantage point, XiChen can see the younger man biting his lips, trying not to smile. He decides to intervene. He has watched Huaisang grow into a fine young master, if a little weak in his cultivation, but all cygnets grow into confident, beautifully handsome swans sooner or later. It is just a matter of time. Meanwhile, he's adding baby brothers to his collection like a fashionable appendage, these days.

"A-Jue, do you really think you can fix Jiang WanYin? I don't know how to do it, and it's a relief that you've offered anyway. I won't hold you to it." He takes a sip of the silver needle tea that he knows has been offered just for him. Not many people know how to brew it just right...his eyes glance unconsciously at Huaisang when a sigh of contented satisfaction leaves his own lips by itself. Huaisang ducks his head to hide a smile. Isn't that proof enough that he had something to do with this tiniest of details?

Predictably, Nie MingJue's focus immediately jumps on this problem like a ravenous dog with a bone.

"I can try. But A-Huan, you should have more faith in me." His hazel eyes glimmer with a twinkle of mischief. "One way or another, he will be a changed man by the time I'm finished with him. You saw what he was like, full of nonsense! First, we'll have to beat that out of him." He snickers.

"Ah...like rough clay." Huaisang nods along sagely.

"Exactly. It's not enough to rid the raw material of grasses and gravel; it must be beaten and sieved to filter out the impediments to a smooth finish. Then only it can be moulded into the shape of something useful," MingJue approves.

"Very well, then. I shall send a message when A-Xian is ready for Baxia, and then we can proceed. However, I have a feeling that either you will have to come to him, or he will have to come to you. Since it's your spiritual weapon, it must require your own hands to make the adjustments."

"That is easily done," Nie MingJue replies. "Even if I have to leave Qinghe, Huaisang is perfectly capable of looking after the place." He smiles at his own cup when Huaisang squawks in an outrageous panicked shriek.

The Nie brothers walk to the gates of the Unclean Realm with XiChen, chatting about this and that, and watching after him as he leaves with the disciples who arrived with him when he brought his current headache here.

Huaisang can feel his big brother's eyes on him, and he makes the mistake of looking his way. This time, the fan isn't fast enough to protect him from the glare.

"You know, I just remembered there's something I've forgotten to do!" He says quickly, trying to evade his Da-Ge.

"Yes, this." Nie MingJue has the fastest reflexes for his muscle density, and he catches Huaisang to pull him into a hard, tight hug. "A-Sang, I meant what I said about leaving all this under your care. I trust you."