Dearly Detested: Grooms in Hate

I will come back.

Lan Wangji had asked his brother to come to Yunmeng as soon as possible. Within a couple of days, Lan Wangji received notice that Xichen was in Yiling waiting for them to meet. As soon as he received the notice he got ready to leave. 

"Wei Ying, I have to go."

Wei Wuxian's heart dropped into his stomach. Over the past few days, Lan Wangji's presence was his sole source of happiness and gave him a feeling of security. Although he was aware that the man would have to leave at some point, he had held on to a faint sliver of hope, praying that Lan Wangji would stay with him. 

"I guess this is goodbye, then? Thank you so much for having stayed and helping us so much, Lan Zhan, it's-"

"No! I'll be back in the evening." Lan Wangji hastened to tell him.

"Oh, ah, eh, okay then! See you in a bit!"

Wei Wuxian brightened up, and smiled at Lan Wangji. His heart went back to its normal pace. So he was only temporarily stepping out. What a relief. Though a part of him was wondering why he was so emotionally reliant on the other man, he chose to ignore it.

Lan Wangji walked out of the cave with Wei Wuxian and was ambushed by a wild A-Yuan. 

"Rich Gege! Me too! Take me!"

"A-Yuan, he has work. Why don't you play with me?"

"No! Rich Gege, please?"

Wei Wuxian was about to scold the boy when Lan Wangji scooped him up in his arms and began walking towards the gate. 

"Lan Zhan, wait! Are you seriously taking him with you?"

"He wants to go."

Wei Wuxian burst out laughing. "Why do you pamper him so? You're going to spoil him rotten, then leave me to take care of him."

Lan Wangji turned to Wei Wuxian, and, with full seriousness, looked into his eyes. 

"Wei Ying. I won't leave you two."

His heart clenched at that. Lan Wangji's promises were reliable, yet why did his heart feel so?

"Haha okay. But still, won't he be in your way?"

"Never."

With that, A-Yuan and Lan Wangji walked off, leaving Wei Wuxian with somehow rosy cheeks and deep thoughts.

Lan Wangji and A-Yuan arrived at the Lan Disciple's inn and were led to a quiet side room, where the older Lan brother sat patiently. 

"Wangji. Good to see you. And who is this young man?" Lan Xichen asked, with a smile on his face, raising an eyebrow at the sight of his brother carrying an unknown young child in his arms.

"Smiling Rich Gege! There are two Rich Geges!" A-Yuan called looking between the two men's faces incredulously. The Twin Jades of Lan truly lived up to their names.

Lan Xichen was amused at the title. "Rich Gege?"

"Mn! Rich Gege buys me all the toys and candies I want!"

"He is Wei Ying's ward." Lan Wangji put A-Yuan down, then elegantly sat down across from his brother and bowed his head in greeting. 

"What a sweet child." Lan Xichen turned to A-Yuan, pulling out a candy from his sleeve. 

"What is your name, young man?"

A-Yuan liked being called a young man. He puffed up his chest and said, "My name is Wen Yuan." Then, copying the greeting Lan Wangji had taught him, he curtsied to Lan Xichen. He was a little wobbly, but he did his best, to the capacity of his tiny hands and short legs.

Lan Xichen was shocked to hear his surname, but he didn't show it. 

"My, how proper of you! A fine young man we have here. Would you like to go play with the puppies that are in the main hall?"

"Yes! Wei Gege never lets me play with puppies, he says they're evil…"

Lan Xichen called for one of the waitresses to take A-Yuan out, then fully diverted his attention towards his baby brother, who got to the point right away.

"I need your help."

"What is it, Wangji?"

"I have a plan."

"To help Young Master Wei?"

"Mn."

"Will it go against Lan Rules?"

"Slightly."

Lan Xichen sighed. "Can I dissuade you, then?"

"No."

"Fine. Go on."

Lan Wangji's plan was simple. The Wens would be portrayed as they were, powerless and feeble, while they would make up a story about Wei Wuxian and his powers going awry. 

To help him, the Lan Clan would benevolently send Lan Wangji, who would get to meet and take care of Wei Wuxian everyday. Meanwhile, they would also trade with the Wens, so they could sustain themselves.

The plan wasn't too complex, but the problem was that the Lan Clan didn't lie. 

"Are you sure, Wangji? I don't want you to be hurt at the end of all this."

"Won't be."

"Well then. I will always stand by you."

Afterwards, the Lan brothers continued talking for a while. Even A-Yuan returned and fell asleep on Wangji's lap. They spoke of Jin Guangshan's incapability as a Chief Cultivator, and how he was treating Meng Yao atrociously. Rumours had it, he had another bastard locked away in Koi Tower. Xichen also told Wangji about how the Lan Clan elders were hoping the Chief Cultivator would be someone morally upright, not a crude, lascivious man. 

Xichen planned to stay in the inn for the night, and A-Yuan slept peacefully for hours at an end in the comfort of his Rich Gege's lap, so the two men did not realise the time. Around eight in the night, Lan Wangji picked up a yawning baby in his arms and flew back to Yiling.