Chenqing

6

When the three arrived to Lan Qiren's room, a woman with silver hair and white and black robes was standing there waiting. Wei Wuxian's eyes lit up upon seeing her.

"Wai Po?" Wuxian called out.

Baoshan smiled and pulled him into a hug, "hello my grandson."

"I'm happy to see you again, but why are you here?" Wuxian asked.

"A little bird came to me saying that you are about to face Lan Qiren. I am here to help you," Baoshan said, "I said I would and I will."

"Why with Lan Qiren?" Wuxian asked.

"You are afraid to face him," Baoshan stated.

Wuxian looked down at the ground, "a little," he said.

"Hello again, Wangji," Baoshan greeted.

"Hello Wai Po," Wangji replied, "this is my brother Xichen."

"It's a pleasure to meet you Sect Leader Lan," Baoshan said.

"I am happy to meet you as well," Xichen said, "and any extra support for Wuxian would be appreciated. I know he is afraid but we need to face him."

"That is why I came," Baoshan said holding Wuxian's hand, "ready."

Wuxian nodded as Xichen led them inside. Wangji walked in behind his brother and then Wuxian and Baoshan followed behind the two.

"Xichen, Wangji," Lan Qiren greeted.

"Good morning Shufu," the two said.

"We have some guests that would like to sit and talk with us," Xichen said.

"Let them in," Lan Qiren said.

Xichen gave Baoshan the signal and she and Wei Wuxian came in, "hello Qiren, it's been a long time," Baoshan said.

"Baoshan," Lan Qiren said and looked at Wuxian, "why is this demon next to you?"

Wei Wuxian didn't even look at him once and stood behind Baoshan. Baoshan frowned, "this so called, Demon, you speak of is my biological grandson. As my daughter was Cangse, I am sure you remember her quite well."

"That damn woman," Lan Qiren mumbled.

"Vulgar language is for forbidden, judgement before knowledge is also forbidden. Hatred and discrimination is forbidden in your sect," Wuxian said calmly, "talking ill of the deceased is forbidden, disrespecting your elders is forbidden, disrespecting the youth is also forbidden. Loud noises and yelling is prohibited too. Are you going to break more rules, Grandmaster Lan?"

Lan Qiren's face paled as he was just giving a list of violations he just made, "hmph, you have no authority to punish me."

"I am soulmates and soul-bonded to Lan Wangji. Making me Lan-Er-Furen," Wuxian showed a forehead ribbon tied to his wrist, "this is what he gave me the night of our consummation. And even if you do not accept me, Sect Leader Lan has the authority."

"You married without my permission as well as the other sect elders?" Lan Qiren asked Wangji.

"I did, and Xiongzhang knows. He approved of Wei Ying and me. If you do not learn to accept Wei Ying, I will leave this sect and live with him and Baoshan," Wangji told him.

"That man has blinded you! You have lost respect for this sect by marrying a man who controls resentment. He is corrupt and there is no going back for him. He killed the Jin heirs and his shijie. He killed thousands at Nightless City and has no remorse for what he did," Lan Qiren said.

"Did you ever figure out why I stopped using my sword?" Wuxian asked him.

"Corruption I assume," Lan Qiren said.

"After Lan Zhan and I parted from Xuanwu's cave, Lotus Pier was attacked not long after. Jiang Cheng, Jiang Yanli and I were the only three who survived. We went into hiding and my sister got sick. I left for a moment just to get medicine for her but when I returned, Jiang Cheng was gone. I found out he was captured by Wen Chao. I told Shijie to stay put while I went to look for him. Wen Ning helped me get him out and retrieved Yu Ziyuan and Jiang Fengmian's remains. When we got my shijie, we went to go hide in a supervising office that he and Wen Qing hid at. She found out that Jiang Cheng lost his golden core. I spend days upon days trying to find a way to help him. Jiang Cheng was giving up and he depended on his cultivation. He couldn't run the sect without it. So I eventually found a thesis that Wen Qing wrote about a golden core transfer."

Wuxian paused as he could feel Baoshan's anger rising, "please continue," she said as calmly as she could.

Wuxian swallowed, "I lied to him saying I knew where Baoshan lived and she could help fix him. He was blindfolded and brought to a random mountain in Yiling. After a fragrance he inhaled he passed out. Wen Qing couldn't use anesthetics as the core was fragile. I was away for three days as she cut me open. I felt everything. I was awake the entire time. Feeling that surge of power dwindle as she removed my core and gave it to Jiang Cheng. She only had a fifty percent chance guarantee for it to succeed. I waited down the mountain by a nearby tea house for Cheng and waited for five days or so. He never showed. Wen Chao found me. He beat me, kicked me, tortured me, I could feel my bones breaking. He then took me and flew me over the burial mounds and pushed me in.

The amount of pain I was in. The pain from the surgery, the beating, the broken bones, but there was also pain from the resentful energy. Emotional, mental, and physical pain. Screams and cries of the dead. It was cold. It used a lot of energy just to use resentment. I created Chenqing to help me with control and the amulet as a base. I never wanted to kill anyone. All people wanted was that stupid amulet. That day at Qiongqi path, a second flute played and it messed with my Chenqing. Next thing I knew, both Jin Zixuan and Jin Zixun were dead. Then Nightless City happened. I only went to get Wen Qing and Wen Ning's ashes, but everyone had other plans.

I used resentment to scare everyone not kill or hurt them. Then as my shijie ran out onto the battlefield, a second flute began to play and puppets came out. I couldn't control them. I watched my shijie take a sword that was meant for me. I wanted to jump because I felt I had nothing left. When Lan Zhan caught me, I had a little bit of hope again, but Jiang Cheng came and stabbed the edge of the cliff. If I didn't pull away, Lan Zhan would have fallen with me. Next thing I knew, I merged with Chenqing."

There was so much information that had been said. Baoshan, who didn't hear the entire story yet was beyond shocked. Her grandson was the most selfless person she had ever met. She didn't know what to say for a moment as she was still trying to take it all in. She then saw Wangji pull Wei Wuxian into a hug. The two were in tears. Baoshan wanted to make everyone who made her grandson suffer, to suffer more than he ever did. She needed to know who was responsible for driving her grandson to wanting to suicide.

////////////
Part 7 coming soon 🔜