even after thirteen years, i still love you | MDZS

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"You've lived alone?"

"Mm"

"How long?"

"5"

"Months?"

"Years"

"Are there other kids?"

"One"

The only audience to this conversation: Weiying was constantly turning his head in between to two sides. They might as well have been a match made in heaven- only ever giving the shortest statements and never saying more.

When the conversation finally stopped, the two established a few, surprising things about the girl- things that probably contributed to her coldness towards Weiying.

Out of curiousity, Weiying asked for the girl's family name.

"Jin"

"Jin?"

"I don't know, that's what the villagers tell me."

"Do you know where that surname would have come from??"

"Jin Guangyao"

Weiying and Lanzhan looked at each other, speechless at what they had just heard. If it was really Jin Guangyao who had executed this while blood sacrifice cult thing, he had so many more secrets that weren't revealed. On the outside, they simply smiled at the girl and left the tent. 

They sat out on the grassland, each deep in their own thoughts.

If Lan Xichen hadn't fallen into Nie Huaisang's deceiving trap and killed his sworn brother, would things be different? Would Jin Guangyao have told them about everything that he did, confessing to each and every one of his crimes? Even if neither said, they both knew, deep inside, Jin Guangyao would've never confessed to those crimes, unless he was really and truly at death's end. And even having one arm cut off wasn't enough for him to fear the death risk.

"Lanzhan"

"Mm"

"Are you sure you want to keep investigating this?"

"..."

"What I mean is th-"

"If you're referring to elder brother, I'm not planning to tell him."

Hearing that, Weiying felt a little more relief at heart: he was afraid the news, if Lanzhan did choose to tell Lan Xichen, would be a big blow to his already heavy heart.

Subconsciously, Weiying lay himself onto Lanzhan's lap again, taking in the scent of his clothes, the same familiar scent that he always felt closure next to. Lying on his husband's lap was a small action, but it brought a sense of calmness to both of them; perhaps it was just the feeling of security that they had one another, but both enjoyed it nonetheless. Even if Lanzhan's clothes changed, scent changed, sitting position changed, Weiying would still place his head on his lap, just because it was Lanzhan. 

Lanzhan adjusted his position so it would be more comfortable for his partner in crime to. While Weiying was shifting his weight around, finding a comfortable position however, he found his head coming into contact with a hard object. He slapped his hand around the top of his head and finally found it. 

The rabbit pendant

And all of a sudden, the atmosphere didn't seem so gloomy anymore. Weiying smiled and took out his pendant, happy at the smallest thing. Lanzhan's hand wrapped around Weiying's and brought the two rabbits together, revealing to Weiying how they could be pieced together.

"No way! Lanzhan how could you not tell me before. This is so fascinating!"

Lanzhan's reply: a small chuckle, told enough about his reaction. It was the small, unexpected things like this that brought a smile to Weiying's face, and Weiying's happiness that brought a smile to Lanzhan's face. If they could live carefree like this after this investigation, they would have no regrets dying. 

It was almost dusk when Weiying woke up from his nap, turned around, and saw Lanzhan had fallen asleep upright. Finding this a good opportunity to provoke him, Weiying stuck his face right up close to Lanzhan's and lightly kissed his lips. 

The lightest touch was enough to wake Lanzhan up.

In a matter of seconds, Weiying found himself pressed to the ground as Lanzhan perched over him, eyes flickering over his lips.

"Lanzhan I'm sor-"

Weiying found himself  speechless, literally, as his lips were shut by a forceful kiss. 

"If you're gonna kiss me, do it properly"

Weiying laughed a little, scared by Lanzhan's dominancy. He was planning to turn Lanzhan over so he could be on top until he realised where they were. He turned around towards the direction of the huts, and to his relief, no one saw them. 

Lanzhan seemed to notice the change in mood and also came to that realisation, promptly getting off Weiying and removing tufts of grass from his hair. 

They walked over to the little girl's hut slowly, enjoying the cool breeze of the night whilst holding hands. They released hands when they got to the entrance of the hut, only to find she wasn't inside. 

Walking around, they asked around for her, to get the same, single response of "no".

It was when they started to get worried that they felt a tap from behind and saw the girl.

"Oh we were looking for you!"

"Yeah, and I was looking at you"

"..." Weiying tilted his head, confused about the little girl's comment.

"You two kissing"

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a/n: sorry for the lack of updates recently! i'll try my best to get the next chapter up before the end of this week! pls vote and comment <3