The Hidden Secret of Lin

Chapter One

Delicate sounds of laughter filled the air, as a wooden boat swayed gently in the waters. Lotus pods surrounded the water surface, basking in the sunlight just like Jiang Cheng, the occupant of the boat. Within the distance, there was another boat; a handsome young man stood dressed in black and red robes, with waist length hair tied up by a red ribbon to match his attire. A sword rested on his hip; its appearance had similar characteristics to a tree branch and next to him was a beautiful young woman, dressed in a gorgeous violet robe.

The laughter came from them.

He watched as the two of them messed around, before another figure appeared. Himself.

He stared at his smiling face as he watched the latter speak softly amongst themselves. Like the young woman, he too was dressed in violet robes. The official colours of their sect. The only difference between that him and now, was merely how mature he has become in the past few years.

"Wei Wuxian!"

He heard himself call out to the other. Which resulted in the man to let out a loud bellow of laughter into the sky as his head titled back.

"A-Cheng, A-Ying"

The soft melodic voice of the woman beside them called out to the two of them, causing him to visibly flinch. A small hand gently touched his arm, followed by a young voice, pulling him back to the present.

"Uncle, what are you looking at?"

He turned his attention away from the horizon. His violet eyes fell onto the small female child kneeling between his legs. Petite hands resting on his knees as she stared up at him with puppy-like eyes. A chuckle escaped his lips at the sight.

"Wei Lan Lin" he spoke in a teasing manner.

He could feel his ice-cold heart slowly melt the longer he stared at the girl. Although he had an extreme dislike towards her parents. One of whom was his former sworn older brother, Wei Wuxian, the other being his 'close friend' Lan Wangji; that does not mean he would extend the dislike to their flesh and blood.

"Uncle, what are you thinking about?"

He watched as the young girl tilted her head to the left, resulting in her head coming to rest on his right knee as she continued to stare up at him with her violet-grey eyes. Her lips forming into a natural pout as she spoke.

He remained silent.

"Uncle! Jie Jie! Look at me!" a voice interrupted.

Both Jiang Cheng and Lin to turn to the source. His eyes widen at the sight of his nephew, Jin Ling trying to balance on the edge of the boat in a handstand. Meanwhile, Lin was giggling at his attempt at showing off.

"Jin Ling!" He called out to the boy, as he lost his balance and fell overboard into the warm water. Before he could dive in after him, he watched as Lin raced to the boats edge, helping the boy get back onto the boat. Once on the boat, he let out a few coughs as he swallowed some water when he fell in

"Even your big sister had to save you from your silly antics" Jiang Cheng scolded the boy, which resulted in him muttering out a small thank you to her before sulking at the fact that he was being scolded.

"A-Ling, I'm sorry" the young girl spoke softly as she brought a lotus pod to her brother, from the pile they picked earlier. Jiang Cheng watched as the two siblings stared at each other for a moment, before Jin Ling grabbed her hand, pulling her into the seat beside him as they began to munch on the lotus seeds from the pod.

It was a touching sight to see the bond these two children have formed over the years. Even though Jin Ling may be a few months younger than her. However, what lingered in the back of his mind was the dreadful day he would have to tell Jin Ling that they were in fact not siblings, but cousins.