25. Complications

Quietly, everyone sat down. A nervous young disciple brought in a tray of brewed tea—there was no standing on ceremony, given the circumstances—then quickly hightailed it out of the room as soon as Lan Qiren let him.

Yanli’s mind had gone blank, in the way it did whenever she felt overwhelmed and uncertain. Distantly, she sensed A’Yao pick up her hand and start rubbing the back of it softly, and it reminded her of her last night in the brothel when he had done the same thing for his mother. It was very soothing. She took a deep breath and looked up at Lan Qiren, who was observing her with a neutral expression.

“What will you do with us now?” She asked. A’Yao and her brothers sat quietly next to her, tense, but waiting to follow her lead.

“I have no plans to do anything in particular,” he eventually answered. She almost slumped in relief, but took her cue from A’Yao, who sat as straight as an imperial minister and looked just as stern.

“As distasteful as I find your mother’s behavior, I do not agree with the idea of holding a parent’s sins against their children.”

Unexpectedly, both of his nephews threw a startled glance his way—at least, Lan Xichen was visibly startled, while Lan Wangji simply looked at his uncle with widened eyes. Yanli figured that counted. Lan Qiren, though, ignored them. Yanli put her curiosity aside for another day.

“I understand that any contact with us, as the bastards of Yunmeng, will cause political difficulties for you. One reason we have remained hidden in Yiling is that it is an area most sects try to avoid, if they can. Even Sect Leader Jiang rarely sends disciples to night hunt there. It is a poor region, and generally overlooked. If you will allow it, we will return there as quickly as possible.”

Oh, Lan Wangji did not like that, she could tell from the way he tensed up.

Ying’er noticed it too. “You can still visit me, Lan-er-gege!”

Lan Wangji’s ears went pink.

“Would you stop being disgusting?” A’Cheng grumbled.

Lan Qiren stared intently at the wall across from him and cleared his throat. Both of his nephews reacted on instinct, lowering their heads respectfully. She thought that was a neat trick and wondered if she could learn it.

“I assure you that we have no designs on Gusu Lan. Our trip through the cave was entirely by accident,” A’Yao intoned politely.

It was a mistake, she saw instantly, because Lan Qiren zeroed in on him. “And who are you, exactly?”

Right, because Lan Qiren knew full well that only three children had left Lotus Pier, not four.

A’Yao let go of her hand and bowed as deeply as possible while sitting. “This one is Meng Yao, from Yunping.”

“Ah.” Lan Qiren looked at him closely, then at her. “And you two have…married?”

A’Yao froze while the boys giggled. It took a moment for Yanli to find her bearings, the very idea having made her brain blank out for a moment for some reason.

“No, Grandmaster Lan! I was captured by slave traders not long after we left Lotus Pier, and taken to Yunping. Meng Yao helped me escape. He had been studying cultivation independently, so in gratitude I offered to continue his training with us.”

“Naturally, I accepted Miss Meng—ah, Miss Jiang’s generous offer and accompanied them back to Yiling.”

“Your family approved of this?”

“My mother did, yes. She sent me off with her blessings.”

“She figured out who I was rather quickly. Intelligence runs in the family,” she said, with a grateful smile at A’Yao, who smiled back.

“Hey,” Ying’er said softly in surprise, but got elbowed by A’Cheng. She did not know what that was about, so she ignored them.

“She offered me her family name as a way to hide our true identities, so we returned to Yiling as four siblings named Meng.”

Lan Qiren pursed his lips. “That is quite unfilial to your ancestors.”

“We couldn’t use our father’s name, though. It’s too recognizable. Everyone would know who we are if a group of Wei siblings showed up.” Ying’er shrugged. For once, it was A’Cheng massaging his temples in aggravation.

“Your…father?” Lan Qiren looked confused, which also meant he looked disturbed. Yanli imagined that people did not say confusing things to him very often.

Ying’er opened his mouth, but Meng Yao reached over and pinched his leg.

Yanli put on her most genteel smile. “As Gusu Lan does not gossip, I am sure you have not heard the news. The man my mother was in congress with was Wei Changze.”

There was a moment of long, drawn out silence as Lan Qiren stared at them in undisguised shock. Lan Xichen was looking at his uncle in worry, but Lan Qiren eventually rallied. “You are all siblings?”

They nodded, except for Meng Yao, who held up his hand. “To be clear, Wei Changze is not my father.”

“It’s too bad, really, because your father is a jerk. I really hate Lanling Jin.” Ying’er shook his head.

“Hate ‘em,” A’Cheng snarled in agreement. Yanli sighed and A’Yao’s smile went forced and brittle.

“Not as much as I hate Yunmeng Jiang, though,” Ying’er added thoughtfully. A’Cheng hummed and nodded with an expression of ‘yes, true, that is very reasonable.’

“Boys!” Yanli snapped and they both shut their mouths with audible clacks.

Lan Qiren put a hand over his eyes, as if in pain. “Cangse Sanren! I should have known that woman was involved.”

“My mother?”

“Mn.” Lan Qiren lowered his hand and looked him over critically. “You look a lot like her, although you have your father’s height and wavy hair.”

Ying’er gasped. “You knew both of my parents?”

Lan Qiren opened his mouth to say something, but stopped and, it seemed, really looked at the four of them for the first time. Yanli thought maybe, perhaps, there was a hint of pity in his gaze.

He ignored Ying’er vibrating in his chair and returned his focus to Yanli before speaking again.

“Despite your destitution and reputation, you have done well by your brothers and Young Master Meng,” Lan Qiren said. “Your persistence and filial duty as the eldest sibling, however unconventional, is admirable.”

“Miss Wei Yanli is a shining example of the highest ideals of the gentry,” Meng Yao said pointedly, while Ying’er and A’Cheng made firm noises of agreement.

Lan Qiren nodded, then drank his tea in silence, clearly lost in thought. Ying’er shifted a little in his usual impatience, but settled when Lan Wangji put his hand on his arm.

“That brings us to the current situation,” Lan Qiren finally said, putting down his tea.

“Shufu—”

Lan Qiren raised his hand sharply, and Lan Wangji bowed his head. “Not that situation.” He sighed heavily. “I mean the yin iron, and what happened with Lan Yi.”

They all turned to Ying’er.

“It’s simple, really. She was losing control of it, so she wanted to pass it to its protector before moving on from this realm. She also knows that several other pieces of it are in play, and asked us to track them down.” He shrugged and Lang Wangji went “Mn” and then they both just sat there.

Lan Qiren frowned and Lan Xichen looked confused and Meng Yao pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Ying’er!” Yanli said, and he yelped as he sat up straight. “That doesn’t explain anything! Grandmaster Lan needs to know what happened!”

“I need to know why she chose you as the new protector, specifically.” His voice was as dry as old paper.

Ying’er frowned and Yanli knew that the next words out of his mouth would probably upset everybody. She had an instinct for it by that point.

“I’m not the protector. The Xuanwu of Slaughter is the protector! But she was asleep the whole time and only just woke up. We are going to use this piece of yin iron to lure her out of hiding and lead her to the Burial Mounds, where she belongs! Then she’ll eat the iron and everything will be fine.” He help up the qiankun pouch and Lan Wangji said “Mn!” again, unhelpfully, while a loud crow cawed in the distance.

They all just stared at them for a long, long moment.

“What the fuck does that mean?” A’Cheng burst out.

“Language, A’Cheng,” Yanli admonished him, but he only mumbled “sorry JieJie” and crossed his arms. She did not feel like pursuing the matter because, after all, he did voice the question on everyone’s mind.

Lan Xichen cleared his throat. “The mythological demi-xuanwu reported to have slaughtered untold scores of cultivators before disappearing five hundred years ago is…is the new protector of the yin iron shards?” Lan Xichen asked delicately, as it seemed Lan Qiren had lost the capacity to speak.

“No, she’s not the new protector. She has always been the protector. People back then stole from her and she got upset, and left the Burial Mounds to chase them down. They tried to kill her after dragging her out of her home and stealing her things! Rude!” Ying’er crossed his arms, genuinely affronted by the idea of cultivators trying to kill a terrible, murderous beast soaked through with resentful energy.

“Then when the wars ended and the yin shards got dispersed and locked away, she was forced into hibernation,” he said furiously. “But now she’s awake and we need to help her get back to the Burial Mounds before she goes insane.” He paused and grimaced. “Soon.”

“Mn!” Lan Wangji nodded once, firmly and with stout determination, but without any further explanation.

“Why do you always talk like a crazy person?” A’Cheng hissed at him.

“I’m not! It’s the truth!” Ying’er held up three fingers.

“You also said the Burial Mounds talk to you!”

“Who do you think told us to get into the blood pool?” Ying’er huffed.

Lan Qiren and Lan Xichen watched the whole exchange in morbid fascination.

“Ying’er,” A’Yao said thoughtfully, which made them all pay attention. It was his ‘I’m trying to solve a complicated problem’ voice, and they all knew better than to interrupt. He paused for a moment before continuing.

“Ying’er, why did the Xuanwu of Slaughter wake up? Why was Lan Yi losing control of the yin iron?”

He bounced in his seat with a fevered intensity, and Yanli braced herself.

“That’s because Wen Ruohan is practicing demonic cultivation with the two pieces of yin iron shards he already has!”