After that night, Jin Ling and Sizhui were secretly engaged.
*****
It was the Mid Autumn Festival.
It was the time where leaves began to orange and redden, with brown exhausting at their sides. And it was also the time where Jin Ling began to hibernate. "A-Ling," Sizhui asked the younger cultivator who had snuck underneath a blanket, "What are you doing?"
Jin Ling poked his head out sweetly, "I'm undergoing a momentary crisis,"
Sizhui's interest was piqued, "what kind of crisis? Your A-Yuan is always here to help."
Jin Ling frowned, "it's the Mid Autumn Festival today. It's supposed to be a day of happiness and family. But how am I supposed to be happy with Uncle and his face paralysis."
Sizhui cuddled Jin Ling while he was still covered in the blanket, "What are you talking about, A-Ling? You are my family. There's no need to be afraid."
After his auspicious remark, Jin Ling settled down. Sunlight shone inside the bedroom, with the golden furniture all emanating a bright and brilliant glare. "Look at you..." Jin Ling frowned, "being so arrogant all the time..."
"Arrogant?" Sizhui was confused. What apart of me is arrogant?
"Whatever." Jin Ling frowned, "just let me down."
After Jin Ling settled back down on his bed from Sizhui's arms, he snuck a quick glance at his lover before dashing out of the room. Sizhui could only stare—completely speechless. Is A-Ling okay?
*****
It was the afternoon of the Mid Autumn Festival.
And Jin Ling was nowhere to be found.
"Have you seen Young Master Jin?" Sizhui asked a nearby maidservant, who shook her head to his answer. "No, I haven't seen him since this morning. However, I remember seeing the Yiling Patriarch visiting over with HanGuang-Jun. Maybe they're together."
"Do you know where Senior Wei and HanGuang-Jun is?" Sizhui's eyes had shared a sign of hope.
The maidservants giggled, "Lan Sizhui, that I cannot tell."
Sizhui's eyebrows had furrowed, "How come?"
The maidservant smiled, "Young Master Jin told me especially."
Filled with confusion and puzzlement to the limit, Sizhui could only stomp off back to Jin Ling's room. He was clueless of the entire situation, and was concerned as well. What if A-Ling is missing? But Senior Wei and HanGuang-Jun should be with him... A-Ling should be fine...
"Yo, Sizhui." The said-cultivator was frightened when he found Jingyi scurrying out from underneath Jin Ling's bed.
"Jingyi?" Sizhui was alarmed, "What are you doing here!?!"
"Calm down," Jingyi frowned, "I've never seen you so worried before."
Sizhui laughed, "and I've never seen you so thoughtful before."
Jingyi, "..."
"Anyways," Sizhui coughed, "What are you doing here?"
Jingyi smirked, "I thought you'd ask." He stood up from the ground, patting some imaginary dust off his robes before straightening his hair, "I found Jin Ling and Senior Wei sneaking into a boat heading for Lotus Pier. I've heard that Lotus Pier's got the best wine there! I bet you they're going there to spice their taste buds up."
Sizhui shuffled uncomfortably, "why would A-Ling leave me for wine?"
Jingyi shrugged, "I have no idea, just a small thought I had."
Sizhui tried to shake off his uneasiness, but it just wouldn't release its heavy grip off of himself. Finally, he said, "I'll go to Lotus Pier."
Jingyi's eyes had widened, "you can't do that."
Sizhui tilted his head, "why can't I?"
Jingyi snickered, "you don't know how Senior Wei got you out from Cloud Recesses? He told the Old Man Lan that you'd go into seclusion in Lanling Jin instead of Cloud Recesses. So therefore, you're not allowed to leave."
Sizhui blinked, "Senior Wei said that for me?"
Jingyi sneered, "Well, Senior Wei has the brightest ideas out of us all."
Sizhui felt even more uncomfortable. He was itching to find Jin Ling, but was not allowed. He wanted to screw the rules, but at the same time... he couldn't just ignore the heights that Wei Wuxian reached just for him to leave Cloud Recesses.
"I bet you're thinking 'screw the rules' or 'but I don't want to'." Jingyi gave Sizhui a light push. "But I'm telling you that if you don't hurry up, you may never get a chance ever again. And you'll regret it..."
Mustering up the courage, Sizhui smiled, "thanks, Jingyi."
It wasn't that difficult for Sizhui to sneak out of the Koi Tower. Even if some of the maidservants saw him jumping across walls, they had no reaction but to laugh at his silliness. Why jump over walls when you can fly on your sword? They thought.
"To Lotus Pier." Sizhui had said when he arrived on the boat. The driver only stared at him helplessly as he was given two stashes of silver ingots. "You're overpaying." The driver said.
"Keep the change." Sizhui pressed.
"My wife will be mad at me when she finds me ripping customers off." The driver frowned.
Sizhui, "..." what a great wife!
In the end, Sizhui had to reluctantly take some change back, stuffing them in the bosom of his robes. The scenery of Lotus Pier was as luxurious as before, not changing that much from the Sunshot Campaign. However, the ride over the waters had practically soothed Sizhui to sleep. The ripples between the boat and the surface of the water was calming, resounding through Sizhui's brain mindlessly.
When he arrived, Sizhui had almost fallen asleep.
Taking a step off the boat and onto the lands of Lotus Pier, Sizhui began asking around, "Have you seen Young Master Jin around here?"
The manager of a stall frowned, "I saw him strolling over these streets with the Yiling Patriarch. They made a lot of fuss—something about a dog named Fairy. Oh, right, the Yiling Patriarch is scared of dogs. In the end, they were traveling with at least two meters apart from each other, as if they were social distancing or something."
Sizhui smiled anxiously, "did you see where they went?"
The stall manager deepened his frown, "how am I supposed to know? I don't stalk wealthy people like you do."
Sizhui, "..."
Taking a deep sigh, Sizhui entered a flower shop. The manager was a pretty and young lady, who wore a black dress with flower prints sewed beauteously. "How may I help you?" She asked politely.
"Have you seen where Young Master Jin have gone?" Sizhui asked.
The manager smiled, "Ahh, Young Master Jin came over to this shop recently with the Yiling Patriarch. They caused some trouble and ruckus. Fairy kept on eating the plants, and the Yiling Patriarch was hanging off from one of the chandeliers. We had to get HanGuang-Jun over to get him off. I believe they came over to buy some white orchid flowers—whoever that receives Young Mister Jin's gift will be the luckiest man on earth."
Sizhui found himself blushing as he listened to the manager's rambling. "What do you mean by man?"
The manager was clueless, "huh? You haven't heard of the past news? Young Master Jin is the sect leader of Lanling Jin, yet he refuses to buy any concubines to add to his harem. Yes, he's still underage, however, the past leader—Jin Guangshan had at least five concubines while he was underage. Then, someone had stirred up a rumor saying that Young Master Jin isn't interested in women. How ridiculous, but I'm not judging."
Sizhui smiled, "Yes, quite the ridiculous theatrics."
"Oh," the flower manager smiled, "I remember hearing that Young Master Jin was saying something about drowning himself in sorrow. Maybe something about alcohol and wine? Oh yeah, there's a nearby wine shop, he might've gone there."
Before Sizhui could step out of the store, the flower manager had gifted him a white orchid flower. She said something about matching two gorgeous men together, but Sizhui paid no attention.
"Have Young Master Jin visited here?" Sizhui asked in the wine shop.
The wine shop owner was an old man whose beard had already blossomed to a colour of white. "Yes, he have. And he broke a couple of my wine jars while he was at it."
Sizhui smiled awkwardly, "I'll pay for your loss-"
"No need," the old man croaked, "HanGuang-Jun already paid. I don't need two people pitying for this old man, just because his deathbed is approaching nearer."
Sizhui, "..."
"And that group of people said something about visiting an uncle or something."
Eventually, somehow, Sizhui found himself staring at the entrance of Yunmeng Jiang's sect leader—Jiang Cheng's residence. "What do you want." Jiang Cheng frowned. He was haughty and tall, an arrogant expression overlaying his face. This is what you call arrogance...
"Um... I was wondering where Young Master Jin is." Sizhui smiled guiltily.
Jiang Cheng huffed, "so you were following my nephew from Koi Tower to Lotus Pier. How hilarious."
Sizhui was silent.
"Laugh." Jiang Cheng frowned.
Sizhui, "..."
"Oh, Sizhui, you're here." Lan Xichen stepped out from the shadows, greeting a small wave to the younger one. "Sect Leader Lan, what are you doing here?" Sizhui bowed.
"Oh, I was just visiting Sect Leader Jiang—since today is the Mid Autumn Festival, a day to celebrate with family."
Sizhui didn't understand why, but when he heard the last word coming out from Xichen's mouth, he shuddered.
"I remember seeing Wei Ying accompanying Young Master Jin to the pond of Lotuses. They're probably going to pick some Lotus seeds and eat them." Xichen added, "additionally, they've been carrying white orchid flowers, and jars of wine. Probably a self-ritual of some sorts."
Sizhui nodded before leaving, "many thanks to Sect Leader Lan and Jiang."
"Forget it," Jiang Cheng sighed, "If I knew you were pursuing my nephew, I would've whipped Sect Leader Lan's mouth shut into orbits already."
"No way..." Xichen chuckled.
Sizhui quickly arrived to the famous pond of lotuses. However, Jin Ling was nowhere to be found. "Young Master Jin was here just a while ago." A passerby explained, "he picked some lotus seeds with the Yiling Patriarch and HanGuang-Jun, saying something about finding a market for some pork."
Sizhui could only thank the nice passerby, "Thank you."
"No need to thank," the passerby giggled, "anything for a man who've fallen in love."
Sizhui, "..."
By the time Sizhui arrived at the market, the sky began to darken. "Young Master Jin just left." The market owner chuckled, "he bought a set of pork and borrowed a kitchen. In the end, the Yiling Patriarch whipped up some lotus soup for the kid to drink. They've went west, where it is known for the best sightseeing place for lotus flowers and the moon."
Sizhui sighed, "I'm out of breath."
The owner laughed, "the youths must have quite the ambition to chase something so far away all the time. Oh well, I hope for your success."
For once, Sizhui wasn't saying "..."
By the time Sizhui arrived on a hillside in the west, the moon was already up in the sky, with the stars dancing around it. From the corner of his ears, he heard many laughs—familiar laughs and hiccups. "A-Ling?" He yelled.
Then, he caught sight of a glimmering gold sword.
Suihua was laying around the grassy hill, while Jin Ling laid lazily. A jar of wine on his side, a bowl of lotus soup on the other side. The bouquet of white orchid flowers was seated across a gravestone with the name 'Jiang Yanli' and 'Jin Zixuan' carved. Sizhui's heart sank as he inched closer to his drunk lover.
Wei Wuxian and Lan Zhan were nowhere to be found—probably living in an inn and spending their time luxuriously.
"A-Ling." Sizhui said. "You shouldn't be drinking out here, you're still underage and... you'll catch a cold."
Jin Ling turned around, seeing Sizhui with his despairing face. He smiled, "A-Yuan is nice."
His cheeks were flushed from the wine as he gulped down the bowl of lotus soup. "Want to share?" He asked, handing over the bowl of lotus soup to Sizhui's open hands. "It's my mother's specialty."
Sizhui bit his lip as he took the bowl and gulped it down until there was nothing left.
"Thank you," He said.
Jin Ling's face was red and he continued giggling, "there's no need to thank me. Thank my mom and dad, they're right in front of you." He pointed to the gravestone, "even though there's no moon cake to celebrate this occasion, but Wei Wuxian thought it'd be a good idea to drink wine and lotus soup with my parents during the Mid Autumn Festival, so I've been doing so ever since five. Though this is my first time trying out wine."
"You shouldn't drink wine." Sizhui pressed. "You're still underage."
"I'm almost 17," Jin Ling yawned, "you should live out your life while you're still young."
Sizhui was quiet. "I'm sorry."
"Sorry for what?" Jin Ling asked.
"I'm sorry," a layer of mist had coated Sizhui's eyes, "my sect have killed your parents and took away your happiness-"
"What are you talking about?" Jin Ling frowned, "I know that Wei Wuxian didn't kill them."
Sizhui pressed, "I am a Wen."
The wind swayed their robes back and forth, as their hair danced like upturning waves. Jin Ling blinked, his eyelashes coating the air like the wings of a dragonfly skimming across the calming surfaces of water. Sizhui didn't understand why, but at that moment, Jin Ling seemed very sober. "I know."
Sizhui was shocked, "Then... why are you still so nice to me... knowing that my clan killed..."
Jin Ling laughed, "But you didn't kill them."
Sizhui was speechless. He didn't expect Jin Ling to react like that.
Jin Ling smiled, getting up from the ground and taking a small white orchid flower from his parents' graves. The flower was small and fragile, as if a sudden wisp of the wind can break it. He tucked the flower by Sizhui's ear, a gentle giggle escaping from his mouth, "Sizhui is best when he's happy."
Before Sizhui could say anything, Jin Ling flushed, his ears emanating a bright red colour, "but don't blame me when I don't compliment you. I'm not so easily swayed."
Sizhui bit his lip. He took out the white orchid flower from his sleeve and tucked it behind Jin Ling's ear as well.
"There we go." Sizhui smiled, "we match."
Author's note!
I am so sorry about the late update! I've been busy stuffing myself in a pile of homework and assignments. And I've also lost some motivation for this story, so it'd be great if you'd suggest me some ideas! Right here:
Another thing—I've been working on another novel (still a draft). It's a novel about all of MXTX's characters from SVSSS, MDZS, to HOB. I hope you'd look forward to it, but I'll likely only publish it after I finish this book.
It'd probably take me a long time to publish another chapter, so I'd like to recommend some other BL novels like MDZS to read in your free time.
1. Mo Dao Zu Shi (some people here have only watched the anime, so make sure to check out the novel while you're at it)
2. Heaven Official's Blessing
3. Scum Villain's Self Saving System
4. Sha Po Lang
5. War Prisoner
6. The Blind Concubine
7. The Rebirth Waste Strikes Back
8. The Daily Task of Preventing My Disciple from Turning to the Dark Side
9. Dumb Husky and His White Cat Shizun
10. Peerless Immortal Surrounded by Demonic Disciples
11. Forced to Marry the Enemy Prince
And that's about it for this author note. Have a great day and sorry for my long break!