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trilliastra · 4 years ago

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[jiang cheng x lan xichen coffee shop/bakery AU where everyone is alive and happy and nothing traumatizing happened. some jingyi x jin ling on the side just because.]

“Where do you wanna eat?” Jiang Cheng checks the mirror, turns on the blinker and starts to turn the wheel to the left only to let out a curse when the car behind him speeds up suddenly, trying to pass.

“There is this new coffee shop-” Jin Ling trails off.

“For dinner?” Jiang Cheng slams his hand on the horn when the idiot drives past him, but finally manages to change lanes. It’s almost eight-thirty, the traffic shouldn’t be this shitty.

“Yeah.” Jin Ling says. “I’m kind of the in mood for a sandwich.”

Jiang Cheng arches an eyebrow, but shrugs in the end. He’s kind of in the mood for a sandwich too.

The coffee shop is near Jin Ling’s school, a small store next to the book shop his sister loves so much. It is warm inside and Jiang Cheng takes off his scarf with a sigh, already eyeing the menu that is hanging on the wall. It smells like coffee and cake and Jiang Cheng’s eyes wander towards the cheesecake on display over the counter. He is supposed to be a on a diet – forced upon him by his sister – but he figures he will get Jin Ling a big slice of cake and his nephew won’t tell her.

A win is a win.

“Oh, hi, Jingyi.” He hears Jin Ling say, turns to watch his nephew waving towards the boy working behind the counter. Huh.

“Hi, Jin Ling.” The boy says, long hair tied on a high ponytail. He looks the same age as Jin Ling, perhaps older, and when he smiles at them, the tip of Jin Ling’s ears turns pink.

Ah.

“What can I get you?” Jingyi asks. Jin Ling does not answer, apparently too busy staring at the other boy and Jiang Cheng huffs out a laugh.

“The meatball sandwich for me.” Jiang Cheng answers, stepping up and nudging his nephew with his elbow. “Jin Ling?”

His nephew blinks, ears going from pink to bright red. “Ah, the same.” He coughs awkwardly. “And a coke.”

“Make that two cokes.” Jiang Cheng says, reaching out for his wallet. “Do you want something else, A-Ling?” He teases, barely managing to hide his smirk.

When Jin Ling does not answer again, too busy glaring daggers at Jiang Cheng, Jingyi huffs out a laugh. “I saved you a piece of your favorite strawberry cake.” He says, his own ears turning pink, but he keeps his eyes on Jin Ling, embarrassed but still confident.

Jin Ling manages to let out a ‘yes, thank you’ before he’s all but running towards a table near the window – and coincidentally far, far away from the counter – leaving Jiang Cheng alone with the other boy. “Anything else, sir?” The boy keeps his eyes on him, holding his ground. Jiang Cheng is known for acting intimidating – Wei Wuxian says it’s his normal face, really – and while he stares at him, Jingyi visibly squirms, despite the bravado, but Jiang Cheng is thoroughly impressed.

“A slice of that cheesecake.” He says, nodding. Jingyi nods back.

“So,” Jiang Cheng sits down, “is their sandwich any good?”

Jin Ling groans, dropping his head on the table. “Stop.” Jiang Cheng smirks, reaches out to pat Jin Ling’s head teasingly. His nephew lifts his head up immediately, hands going up to fix his hair.

“Do your parents know?”

“There is nothing to know.” Jin Ling whispers aggressively. “I just – I kind of like him, but – it’s not like I want them asking me questions.”

Well, understandable. The first time Jiang Cheng dated a boy, he was in high school and despite his sister being the sweetest, kindest person in the world, she is also, somehow, terrifying. When she talked to the guy, he was thoroughly scarred for life. And the worst part is that Jiang Cheng couldn’t even be mad at her afterwards, because she genuinely did not know she was scaring him.

He doesn’t know how Jin Zixuan would react, but if he finds out about this, then Jiang Yanli certainly will.

“And you’re the only normal uncle I have.” Jin Ling keeps going. “Like,” Jin Ling waves his hand around, “can you even imagine?” He shudders, looking down at his hands.

Even though the bar is pretty low on that one, Jiang Cheng will take the backhanded compliment and enjoy it. Along with his cheesecake.

“Here is your sandwich.” Jingyi says, placing the sandwich in front of Jiang Cheng, along with his coke, and then doing the same with Jin Ling. “I’ll be right back with your cakes.”

Before Jiang Cheng can open his mouth, Jin Ling is already letting out a strangled ‘thank you’, waving at Jingyi’s back.

Once the other boy disappears behind a door with a sign that reads ‘kitchen’, Jin Ling turns to Jiang Cheng with a desperate look on his face. “Help.” He pleads and Jiang Cheng finally lets out the laugh he was trying to hold.

“Do you go the same school?” Jiang Cheng asks, eyeing the huge sandwich. This will last him dinner and tomorrow’s breakfast. His sister will kill him.

“Yeah.” Jin Ling answers, already diving for his third bite. Teenagers. “He’s graduating this year and then I’ll never see him again. Jiujiu, this is my last chance!” He says, looking at him with big pleading eyes.

His first thought is that Jin Ling must be spending too much time with Wei Wuxian, but then he remembers the mess that was Jin Zixuan at seventeen and really, it’s not like Jin Ling had much of a chance.

“Have you tried, I don’t know, asking him out?” Jiang Cheng has always been a very upfront person. It has gotten him into trouble before and, more than once, it ended on humiliation and him breaking something out of anger, but it also saved him a lot of time and much heartbreak.

Jin Ling rolls his eyes, opens his mouth to answer, but as if on cue, Jingyi is back with their cakes. His nephew’s expression goes from annoyed to smitten in a nanosecond and Jiang Cheng bites on his sandwich to stop himself from laughing again.

“Holy shit.” He lets out without even thinking, pulls back to stare at the sandwich and frown. “How is this so good?”

Jingyi laughs while Jin Ling slaps a hand over his face, embarrassed, and Jiang Cheng takes another bite curiously. Yeah, the meatballs are so tender they melt in his mouth and the sauce is sweet but with a hint of something spicy and he never thought bread could taste so good.

“Yeah, that happens something.” Jingyi says, still laughing. Jin Ling’s eyes widen as he keeps looking at him, mouth open with an expression of pure adoration.

If the sandwich weren’t so good, Jiang Cheng would have thrown it at his face.

“Can I have another one?” Jiang Cheng asks.

“You didn’t even finish this one!” Jin Ling points out.

“It’s for Wei Wuxian.” Jiang Cheng says. “I’m gonna make him eat it and then not tell him where I got it. It’s going to drive him crazy.” Jin Ling groans, burying his face in his hands.

Jingyi pats his shoulder, friendly, and Jin Ling’s entire body jerks back in surprise and he knocks his glass off the table, breaking it in tiny pieces and spilling coke everywhere.

“I’m sorry!” Jin Ling cries out, kneeling down immediately to try and clean it up, but he only manages to cut himself with a glass shard while Jingyi tries to stop him from moving.

Jin Ling’s cry of pain startles Jiang Cheng from his food induced euphoria and he immediately reaches out for his nephew’s hand, holding a napkin over the cut while Jingyi watches them worriedly.

The sound also manages to grab the attention of some of the other costumers and the coffee shop goes silent, the background noise stopping as everyone looks at them curiously.

“Jingyi,” someone calls, “what happened?”

“It was an accident!” he hears Jingyi answer at the same time Jin Ling yells, “it was my fault!”, followed by the sound of steps getting closer and when Jiang Cheng finally looks up, he comes face to face with the most beautiful man he’s ever seen. And he is wearing crocs.

Jiang Cheng is not a snob. He’s been known to only wearing the same pair of black dress pants and purple dress shirt to every social event that requires formal wear, he still owns (and uses) t-shirts that he bought when he was in college and he showed up to Jin Ling’s middle school graduation party wearing jeans. He could not be less of a snob.

But there is something about crocs that he always associated with guys like Wei Wuxian – freelance journalists that don’t care about how they look and sometimes forget to shower because they are too immersed on their job – and not a business owner that can cook delicious meatball sandwiches.

Jiang Cheng feels his eyebrow twitching when the man sits down, pastel blue crocs in plain view, and starts disinfecting Jin Ling’s cut.

“This happens all the time with Jingyi.” The man – “call me, Lan Xichen” – says, smiling at Jiang Cheng’s nephew. He has the kindest smile Jiang Cheng has ever seen on someone who is not his sister.

Jin Ling looks at the other boy shyly. Jingyi simply shrugs. “I always born clumsy.”

Lan Xichen huffs out a laugh. “That is true.” He agrees, reaching out for the band-aids. He sticks one over Jin Ling’s cut and squeezes his shoulder softly. “So, you’re Jin Ling. Jingyi talks a lot about you.”

“Oh,” Jin Ling goes bright red, then risks a glance at Jingyi who is already looking at him, “really?”

“Well,” Jingyi’s shrugs bashfully, “yeah.”

“Oh.” Jin Ling repeats, straightening up and puffing up his chest like a peacock. He looks exactly like his father.

Jiang Cheng snorts, shaking his head at the thought, watching Jingyi pull Jin Ling towards the far corner of the shop.

Lan Xichen watches them as well before he’s standing up to turn the sign on the door from open to closed. “Are you his father?” He asks Jiang Cheng.

“God, no.” Jiang Cheng answers. He risks a glance towards the boys, Jingyi holding Jin Ling’s hand carefully. It seems as if he’s inspecting Jin Ling’s wound, but Jiang Cheng can see the faint blush on his cheeks. “I’m his uncle.”

“Ah,” Lan Xichen nods, “that explains it.”

Jiang Cheng frowns. “Explains what?”

“The flirting.” He gestures towards the boys as they seem to be getting closer and closer to each other. Jiang Cheng hopes they won’t start making out, that is just something he does not want to see.

“Well,” Jiang Cheng shrugs, “Jin Ling said I’m his normal uncle.”

Lan Xichen laughs, a melodic sound, and Jiang Cheng almost forgets about the crocs – if only they weren’t fucking pastel blue.

“It was a gift from my nephew.” Lan Xichen explains when he notices Jiang Cheng staring at the hideous thing. “He’s five and obsessed with them. He also came to visit this morning, so-” he trails off.

“Ah,” Jiang Cheng teases, “that explains it.”

This time Lan Xichen lets out another laugh and Jiang Cheng swallows heavily, watching the laughter lines around the sides of his mouth, the expanse of his jaw. When the other man turns around, still laughing, to turn off some of the lights on the shop, Jiang Cheng stares at his back, the hard muscles under the tight white shirt.

The low ponytail only adds up to the look and Jiang Cheng feels his mouth water.

“So, did you like the food?” Lan Xichen asks, turning to him again with that same smile. Jiang Cheng wonders if he can even stop smiling and that leads to him thinking about all the other things he could be doing with those lips and –

“Ah, yeah.” Jiang Cheng answers as Lan Xichen stares at him. It seems as if hanging out with a seventeen-year-old with a crush for too long has made him regress to his own teenage years.

Lan Xichen keeps looking at him, curious, assessing, and Jiang Cheng has to look away, unable to hold his gaze, and his eyes stop on the cheesecake on the counter. It still looks delicious and Jiang Cheng groans when he realizes he never had the chance to even taste it.

“Oh.” Lan Xichen laughs. “I can arrange it to go, if you’d like.”

“Yeah.” Jiang Cheng agrees, checking his watch. It’s almost ten and he still needs to drive Jin Ling home. “I think that would be better.” He risks a glance towards his nephew, shakes his head when he sees the boys holding hands, faces close together and whispering to each other. Jingyi takes the ribbon that was tying his hair and ties it around Jin Ling’s wrist, pressing a kiss on his hand.

Jiang Cheng smiles, despite himself, and rolls his eyes.

“You’re not a romantic, are you?” Lan Xichen points out. For the first time that night, he’s not smiling. His face still looks soft, but he seems more confused now, maybe a little – annoyed?

Jiang Cheng shrugs. “I don’t know what I am. No one ever did that to me.” He comments, absent-mindedly. “But they look happy, so–”

“What?” Lan Xichen interrupts.

Jiang Cheng frowns, but before he can answer Lan Xichen has already moved away, taking the abandoned plate with the cheesecake and placing the slice inside a little box decorated with Christmas figurines.

“Look, I –” he doesn’t know what exactly he’s trying to say, doesn’t know why he suddenly feels like he needs to explain himself to a stranger, but Lan Xichen does not let him finish, just turns around and heads for the kitchen, “what the fuck?” That was the most confusing interaction Jiang Cheng has ever had and he grew up with Wei Wuxian and all his – personality.

Was he offended by Jiang Cheng’s unromantic feelings? Was he angry? Is he plotting to take Jingyi away from Jin Ling because his uncle is clearly an asshole?

Jiang Cheng keeps wondering, staring at the door, when Lan Xichen comes back holding several small boxes. He places them all on the counter and starts to rummage around searching for something with a determined look.

Cookies. Inside each box there seems to be different types of cookies, with different shapes and frostings. A pink heart, a yellow star, Santa Claus with a red hat and white beard, a penguin – for some reason – and several Christmas trees.

“Huh-”

“These are for you,” Lan Xichen explains. Jiang Cheng arches an eyebrow, he did not order– “I am romancing you.”

Jiang Cheng blinks, slowly, lets his mouth hang open in surprise. “What?”

Lan Xichen smiles again, proudly. “They say the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.” He gestures towards all the boxes and the cookies and Jiang Cheng still doesn’t understand. “You said no one has ever done something romantic to you.” He explains.

Jiang Cheng feels himself blushing, squirming under the intensity in Lan Xichen’s gaze. He doesn’t know if he should feel touched or embarrassed. “You don’t have to.” He manages to say.

“I wanted to.” Lan Xichen promises, holding out a piece of paper. “Call me?” He asks. “So, we can go out to eat something that was not cooked by me?”

Jiang Cheng swallows, heavily. “But I liked your food.”

“Ah,” Lan Xichen laughs, “call me anyway. So, I can cook something just for you.”

That is not an innuendo, Jiang Cheng tells himself, Lan Xichen did not mean it like that, he keeps repeating in his head. But it is too late now, the idea has been planted in his brain, it has started to create roots, he will be thinking about it for weeks.

“Jiujiu,” Jin Ling calls, suddenly, and Jiang Cheng forces himself to look away from Lan Xichen’s smile, “my mom is calling.” He shows his phone and Jiang Cheng curses himself. He promised they’d be home by ten, ten-fifteen at most.

“Tell her we’re on our way.” He turns to Lan Xichen, almost sadly, and takes the paper with his number. Lan Xichen rushes to put all the boxes inside plastic bags and then asks Jingyi to help them carry them to Jiang Cheng’s car.

While the boys say goodbye with a long hug, Jiang Cheng turns to Lan Xichen, almost wishing he was a teenager so he could do the same. “I will call you.” He says. Lan Xichen nods, reaching out to squeeze Jiang Cheng’s hand, doesn’t let it go until Jiang Cheng pulls back and even then, his touch linger, fingers caressing Jiang Cheng’s palm in a silent promise.

“Why did you buy all these cookies?” Jin Ling asks, smiling happily like the teenager in love that he is.

“Just felt like it.” Jiang Cheng answers, smiling happily as well.

#jiang cheng x lan xichen #xicheng #lan xichen x jiang cheng #the untamed #mo dao zu shi #my fic #well there you have it

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boxoftheskyking · 4 years ago

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The Untamed/CQL Rec List Part 2

I’m stuck on this chapter, so I’m doing this instead! My recs aren’t the most unique bc this fandom is so massive and I mostly get them off other lists. But hopefully still interesting.

If you haven’t watched the show yet you gotta

You can find my first reclist here

Shameless Self-Promotion to start:

Something For Yourself - Happy little fluff piece

Something Good - my 43K word Sound of Music AU

Pick Up Every Piece - my post-war journalist AU WIP

The Recs! In no particular order:

Wei Wuxian/Lan Wangji

your horizon to chase by hellotailor T, 6,001 words They miss each other!!! Wei Ying draws funny pictures of himself! Communication!

you are my delightful intruder by hanguang-jacked E, 4,403 words Lan Zhan wakes up to an empty bed and panics

Orchids in Lotus Pier by Vamillepudding G, 21,631 words I’m a sucker for Lan Zhan & Jiang Cheng being pals, and of course Wei Ying thinks they’re in looooove

hold me fast, fear me not by cicer M, 16,155 words Tam Lin AU - nice fairy tale style writing

hunters seeking solid ground by Attila E, 23,633 words Wei Ying can only sleep with Lan Zhan around

get bolder by plonk NR, 11,288 words This is the plonk section of the reclist. flashbacks telling a modern AU best pals to lovers

feels like the first time by plonk NR, 4,076 words alternate scene from the above fic

i’ll be your girl by plonk E, 3,077 words Wei Ying in drag seduces Lan Zhan, is an idiot, and totally owns my bi ass

A Lot of Edges Called Perhaps by hansbekhart E, 21,922 words Wei Ying comes home after 8 months to an injured Lan Zhan & then they bang

live from new york by varnes E, 87,069 word You’ve all seen it recced before and prob read it already. SNL AU that get The Vibe so well actually made me want to get back into producing which is saying something bc I hate it

Where the Lonely Ones Go by CSHfic and VSfic T, 23,940 words Cursed baby!

To Do With You What Spring Does With Cherry Trees by sfbluestocking M, 36,621 words Lan Zhan goes with Wei Ying and the Wens after Qiongqi Way

what else is there? by mme_anxious T, 12,917 words Jin Guangyao turns Lan Zhan and Jin Zixuan into swans. Lan Zhan and Wei Ying may be better at interspecies communication than they are at human communication.

shorthand of emotion by sarahyyy G, 6,010 words Modern AU where Lan Zhan is a musician and the babies try to set him up. It is fluffy good fun.

Lead Me On Through by mrsronweasley E, 54,673 words UGH kill me. You know where it’s going but it’s still super satisfying to get there. Everyone has a secret betrothed and so the boys decide to practice kissing to prepare. Just kissing, it’ll be fine.

Your Heart and Mine by natcat5 T, 8,591 words My favorite daemon AU! Lan Zhan’s daemon sits on Wei Ying’s daemon and that’s all you need to know.

sugar stains by lanjingyeet T, 18,243 words Wei Ying gets turned into a toddler and while it is adorable it is very sad for Lan Zhan

softly through pine trees, the moon arrives by theLoyalRoyalGuard G, 3,032 words Lan Zhan turns into a rabbit and it is Devastating

Brilliant Mistake by brooklinegirl E, 53,702 words The first long fic I read after like two months of not having a brain and it made me happy. Modern cultivator sex pollen baby, can’t go wrong.

Wei Wuxian/Wen Qing

No Color In Itself by trickybonmot E, 2,485 words Do you know how hard it is to find good Wei Ying/Wen Qing buddy sex?? Which should be everywhere!! This has d/s and a strap on, wahoo

Xiao Zhan/Wang Yibo

you can take my heart (and hold it together) by ThirtySixSaveFiles E, 54,894 words You don’t have to know anything at all about RPF or the characters or anything, it’s a 100% original sci-fi story about a mechanic in love with an android and it is so fucking bomb

#fic recs #the untamed #cql #mo dao zu shi #reclist

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rosethornewrites · 4 years ago

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Fic: frost on the frozen ground

Relationships: Lán Zhàn | Lán Wàngjī/Wèi Yīng | Wèi Wúxiàn, Lán Huàn | Lán Xīchén/Mèng Yáo | Jīn Guāngyáo

Characters: Lan Zhan | Lan Wangji, Lan Huan | Lan Xichen, Lan Yuan | Lan Sizhui, Lan Qiren, Wei Ying | Wei Wuxian, Wen Qing, Fourth Uncle, Jin Zixun

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Modern AU, Corporate Espionage, Bad Uncle Lán Qǐrén, Anxiety, Confrontations, Family, References to Depression, Bunnies, Found Family, Podfic Welcome

Summary: Wei Ying and A-Zhan are still dealing with the fallout weeks after the public arrest of Meng Yao and Jin Guangshan cleared Wei Ying's name, when an uninvited visitor shows up. Second in the moonlight falls corporate spy AU series, inspired by @angstymdzsthoughts.

Notes: See end.

AO3 link

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Wei Ying was exhausted. It wasn’t even a physical sort of exhaustion, but one brought on by the absolute circus the last few weeks had been, following the very public arrest of Lan Xichen’s fiancé for the exact corporate espionage Gusu Lan Tech had accused him of and ruined his life over five years ago.

Trust Nie Huaisang to somehow convince the FBI to arrest Meng Yao during a major family dinner for the grooms that was well-attended by the media as a sort of social gala, and to also ensure they arrested Jin Guangshan at the same time. He was only the head of Jin Enterprises, so it’s not like it didn’t send that company’s stocks tanking immediately while also humiliating Gusu Lan Tech.

Nie Huaisang did petty well.

Wei Ying just wished the aftermath hadn’t meant reporters hounding him and A-Zhan almost constantly, though that wasn’t Huaisang’s fault. At least, that he knew of—his old friend hadn’t reached out, and Wei Ying didn’t know whether to expect him to.

They’d had to start screening their calls and if they did go out, it was wearing disguises and usually separately.

It had started when Jin Guangshan’s shitty nephew had attempted to ambush interview them while they were shopping for groceries with A-Yuan.

Everyone knew he was a hack. Jin Zixun had majored in history at a university his uncle was on the board of (the only reason he was even admitted) and barely got his degree. He’d been resoundingly rejected by every reputable employer despite his uncle’s best efforts, and could only get a job at some hack blog site pretending to be news and to have journalistic integrity. He was largely known for ludicrous conspiracy theories, vehement misogyny, and, weirdly, white nationalist talking points, but his articles and livestreams apparently got enough advertising revenue to merit his continued employment.

He had the nerve to imply Wei Ying had somehow framed Meng Yao and Jin Guangshan.

On the bright side, the camera had been livestreaming, and A-Zhan had verbally eviscerated him and implied that he probably had a hand in the corporate espionage, that maybe the investigation should look into him.

“I recall your name and the insulting things you said and wrote about Wei Ying. You claimed, without evidence, there was a connection with Compu-Jiang, and then they took a financial hit. Trying to take out your uncle’s competition?”

Jin Zixun’s face had turned interesting colors and he cut the camera, but the damage was done. They learned the next day he was canned from the pseudo-journalist farce and the FBI had declared him a “person of interest” and seized his electronics.

The interest in that led to more media coverage looking at the Weis, rekindling interest in the false accusation and Wei Ying’s blacklisting from the industry. Uncle Four had banned reporters from the premises, and since he owned the building that meant they at least weren’t buzzing the apartment from the lobby or, worse, somehow getting in and knocking on their door, for the most part at least. Now they were simply waiting across the street and accosting them if they spotted them, something that most often happened if they were together, and less if they were separate.

Wei Ying didn’t want to revisit the year or so following the blacklisting. Even with A-Zhan beside him, it had been like a montage of humiliation and pain. He hated that these reporters wanted to put all that on display again.

The Wens had been amazing, often bringing them groceries and cooked meals, but they couldn’t stay cooped up—they had a son, and he was fond of parks and libraries. Sometimes his aunts or uncles or Granny would take him out for them if there was a congregation of reporters, and that had at least ensured the parasites hadn’t caught on to A-Yuan’s existence connected to them yet.

As a bright spot, A-Li had contacted him. With her father-in-law in prison for the corporate espionage Wei Ying had been framed for, her husband had consented to let him meet his nephew. She was excited to meet A-Yuan. They were just waiting for some of the furor to die down.

Even though it was Saturday, Wei Ying was finishing a coding project while A-Zhan was taking A-Yuan to the library and then a different park than usual. He wished he could go with them, but it was better not to tempt fate.

He was nearly finished sorting out a coding error when the bell for the apartment building buzzer rang. Sighing in irritation, he stalked to the door and pressed the button to respond, careful not to press the one that unlocked the door.

“No comment. Please leave the premises.”

“I am not the press,” a gravelly male voice responded.

Wei Ying blinked. He knew that voice, but he couldn’t place it.

“Name?”

“You know perfectly well who I am.”

It was the haughtiness of the tone that pinged his memory. How could he forget, being lectured by Lan Qiren on his ungrateful nature and ruining of his nephew when he was being fired?

Just the memory made him nauseous. As far as he knew, Lan Qiren hadn’t reached out to A-Zhan, though Lan Xichen had, apologizing that they would be dragged into this again.

Quickly, he pulled his phone from his pocket and fired a text message off to A-Zhan.

Your uncle is here

“You’ll need to make an appointment,” he said blithely. “Have Lan Xichen set it up with A-Zhan. He has his number.”

His phone dinged as the uninvited visitor made outraged sounds that he very carefully refused to allow to register as words. Then the buzzer started up again, and he ignored it.

Not invited. Do not let him in.

In spite of the seriousness of the situation, Wei Ying had to smile over his husband’s use of proper punctuation and capitalization, ever proper even via text.

on it, he replied. will let you know when clear

The noise from the intercom/buzzer ceased, thankfully, and Wei Ying moved back toward the office, stepping over the barrier that kept Turmeric from getting to all the cords. As he did, he texted Wen Qing to let her know what had happened.

a-zhans uncle buzzed from lobby

told him to make appt

idk what he wants

He sat down with a sigh and stretched before trying to immerse himself back in the code. He’d just found his line of coding error when a knock on the door reverberated through the apartment. Before he could even contemplate getting up, his phone chimed, a text from Wen Qing.

Auntie 6 came to me

He followed her in

Uncle 4 and I are on it

Which meant, of course, that Lan Qiren had breached the building, likely not even registering that he was trespassing, or so privileged that he felt trespassing laws didn’t apply to him.

Fuck.

He could feel his anxiety rising, something he didn’t need. Now was not the time for a Xanax, no matter how much his heart was fluttering at the idea of having to deal with A-Zhan’s uncle.

lmk when i can escape, he sent back.

Then he texted A-Zhan.

breached perimeter

qing-jie & unc 4 to rescue

will come to u

where r u?

Wei Ying crept to the living room, trying to stay quiet as the intruder knocked again, more forcefully. He debated for a moment, fiddling with his phone nervously before slipping it in his pocket, then grabbed Turmeric’s carrier, leash, and harness. The bunny needed some outdoors time, and Wei Ying would probably be able to meet A-Zhan and A-Yuan at the park.

The knocking continued, and he was certain before long Lan Qiren would lose all sense of decorum and start yelling through the door.

plz hurry, he texted Wen Qing.

He donned a hat A-Yuan had gifted him for Father’s Day, an adorable white bucket hat with bunnies and carrots on it, and a pair of big sunglasses. He was wearing torn jeans and a black t-shirt with a binary code motif Wen Ning had given him for Christmas—it read “fuck off,” but wasn’t too inappropriate given that only coders could read it. He was as decent as he was going to get.

Wei Ying opened Turmeric’s hutch and scooped him gently into the carrier, hushing him even though he was completely quiet and cooperative. He felt like an intruder in his own home, and it left a sour taste in his mouth.

Finally, he could hear voices outside the door—Uncle Four’s boisterous voice asking what he could do for “the gentleman,” Wen Qing mentioning trespassing, Lan Qiren’s haughtiness slowly sputtering out, growing distant as they led him away.

His phone dinged twice, A-Zhan texting the location of the park, and Wen Qing giving the all-clear. Wei Ying grabbed his shoes, keys, and wallet, Turmeric’s crate and his sundries, and slipped out of the apartment in socked feet, easing the door shut and locking it as quietly as he could.

He practically tiptoed down the side staircase, the one that didn’t lead to the lobby but straight outside, and slipped his shoes on in the vestibule before slipping outside into the sunshine, making sure the door shut behind him without anyone getting in.

The park, thankfully, was not too far away, and he didn’t see any reporters on this side of the building. Likely they had seen Lan Qiren enter and were all crowded on the side near the lobby hoping to see something good.

Fat chance.

Wei Ying booked it the first few blocks before he felt like he’d escaped and started to calm, but he didn’t really relax until he could see A-Zhan in the distance, looking in his direction, A-Yuan beside him sipping on a boxed apple juice. His husband folded him into a hug, and he could feel the tension ease from his body with a soft sigh.

“I brought Turmeric. He could use some outside time.”

The tiny smile he got from A-Zhan finished the job of easing the worst of his anxiety, and they sat with A-Yuan on the grass to bring Turmeric out of the carrier and belt him into his little harness.

His fingers fumbled on the buckles and he sighed in frustration.

“Sit, A-Ying,” A-Zhan said. “Relax.”

There was a bit of worry in his eyes, and that told Wei Ying he must look frazzled. A-Zhan knew his anxieties, knew what Lan Qiren had said to him, something he’d opened up about long ago, when they’d learned to communicate and work as a team, and when Wei Ying was learning not to push him away.

And so Wei Ying settled back and let him finish with Turmeric, focused on the sunshine and the breeze and the soft grass beneath him. His fingers itched to pull out his phone, though he’d received no notifications, and he resisted it, instead rubbing his hand along the surface of the grass, letting the individual strands tickle his palms.

Before long, their absolutely adorable second son was contentedly exploring the grass, and curious children were starting to gather. A-Zhan explained bunnies didn’t like loud noises and sudden movements, and told them if they had permission from their parents, they could approach one at a time to pet him.

A-Yuan tumbled into Wei Ying’s lap, content to watch Turmeric from there, and he had no doubt his son had picked up on his anxiety. He was a bright boy.

Eventually, the children wandered away, a calm bunny only so interesting, and A-Yuan was half-asleep on his lap. A-Zhan’s phone dinged, and he handed the leash to Wei Ying before fishing it out. A bit of texting and a few alerts later, his mouth was downturned.

“A-Zhan?” he asked.

“I sent Xichen to retrieve Qiren, but he insists he must speak to me.”

Wei Ying fantasized briefly about Lan Qiren being led from the premises in handcuffs, yelling, but he knew that wouldn’t solve anything. It could well make things worse, so he wasn’t even able to enjoy the fantasy.

“The board voted to remove xiongzhang,” he added. “Likely he wishes to insist I take over the company.”

He felt his chest clench at that. Pity toward Xichen, who had done what he could to keep Wei Ying out of prison even if only for A-Zhan’s sake, and the grief he was facing as his life fell apart around him. But more, there was fear that A-Zhan would take it, would leave him behind—not a rational fear given everything they had weathered together, but anxiety was cruel.

“You can take it if you want it, A-Zhan,” he said after a minute.

A-Zhan made a noncommittal noise.

“I am texting Wen Qing to prepare a conference room so we need not open our home to him,” he replied after a moment. “I should hear him out.”

Wei Ying looked away, swallowing hard at the taste of bile. His vision was blurred, but he kept a handle on it, refused to cry again over this.

“I… I’ll stay with A-Yuan while you meet him.”

He startled when A-Zhan knelt in front of him and took his hands.

“We are together in this and all things. Granny will meet us and watch A-Yuan during the meeting. I need you there, A-Ying. I will say no.”

Wei Ying glanced up at him.

“He will hound us until I meet with him, but I will not go back to Gusu Lan Tech,” A-Zhan said, his voice insistent, worried. “My place is with you, at Dafan.”

“You’re sure you don’t want it?” he couldn’t help asking.

This was, after all, a chance for A-Zhan to reconcile with his family and further his career. But his husband’s expression turned stormy at the question.

“They will never admit to having wronged you, A-Ying. I cannot abide that.”

Wei Ying manages a weak smile.

“They’ll never admit they wronged you, either.”

A-Zhan nodded, the corners of his lips taut with stress.

“Wen Qing will sit in with us since this is now a Dafan Applications matter. Uncle Four, too.”

Wei Ying blinked at him blankly for a moment before he understood. Technically Gusu Lan Tech was trying to poach A-Zhan from Dafan Applications, which made it company business. Lan Qiren was trespassing on Uncle Four’s property, which made it his business. And it meant they’d have witnesses. His husband was clever, and so was Wen Qing.

“A-Die, baba, okay?”

A-Yuan looked up at them solemnly. The poor child had been with them at the grocery store when Jin Zixun had ambushed them, had seen so much these past weeks that he didn’t understand. He deserved some explanation.

“We are, baobei,” Wei Ying said firmly. “Bad things happened a few years ago. Someone made it look like a-die did something bad, and they just got caught.”

He could see the moment their son understood.

“That’s why the mean man said it was your fault?”

Wei Ying nodded, and A-Yuan squirmed out of his lap to give him a giant hug.

“Thank you. Now baba’s uncle wants to talk to us, so we need to go home. You’ll visit with popo while we find out what he wants, okay?”

A-Yuan bit his lip, looking more anxious than a child his age should.

“Baba’s uncle won’t be mean to you, will he?”

His heart broke at his son’s concern. It was clear he’d picked up on undertones they thought they’d kept away. A-Zhan wrapped A-Yuan in a hug.

“Baba won’t let shufu be mean to a-die,” A-Zhan said seriously.

“And your gugu will be with us, so she won’t let him be mean to either of us,” Wei Ying added.

A-Yuan brightened—Wen Qing had a reputation, one even her five-year-old nephew was aware of. He trusted her to protect his dads.

“Okay,” A-Yuan said. “If you bring Turmeric with you, he’ll comfort you if he’s mean!”

Wei Ying smiled at that.

“That’s why we’re leaving Turmeric with you, so he can comfort you. I know you’re worried, but baba and I will be okay. We’ll come right home when we’re done and snuggle with you and Turmeric.”

Their son seemed to accept that, and A-Zhan deftly removed Turmeric’s harness and placed him in the carrier. He pulled their disguises from a bag. Wei Ying was delighted when A-Yuan put on his brown bunny bucket hat, and he reached out to arrange the ears once the boy had it on. A-Zhan was wearing his own bucket hat, green with frog eyes, also a Father’s Day gift from A-Yuan.

Honesty, he hadn’t expected that fatherhood would make A-Zhan even sexier, but he wasn’t complaining.

The walk home was quiet. Wei Ying dreaded reaching home and hated that he felt that way. The home he had made with A-Zhan and A-Yuan was precious to him, and it felt like a sacred space had been violated.

As they drew nearer, they planned to separate, A-Zhan taking A-Yuan to one side staircase, and Wei Ying taking Turmeric to the other, the plan to meet at the apartment.

Wei Ying was actually surprised when it went off without a hitch, and he opened the stairwell door to see A-Zhan unlocking the door, Granny already hugging A-Yuan. Just a few years ago she’d have picked him up, but he was a bit big for that now.

She smiled at his approach, reaching up to pat him on the cheek.

“Aiya, you look so stressed. Popo will make dinner,” she said. “Auntie Three is making baozi for the building, too.”

Several of the aunties loved cooking different things in excess, so every few weeks they would make a huge batch of something delicious for the whole building, since everyone in the building was family. Auntie Three’s baozi were a favorite of his; she remembered his love for spicy food and always accommodated that in his.

“Extra spicy for A-Ying,” he chirped, though popo clucked softly in a way that let him know she saw through his attempt at cheer.

She headed straight for the kitchen, where she would likely catalogue the fridge to decide what to cook. Whatever she made, it would be delicious; his mouth was almost watering just thinking about it.

He focused on getting Turmeric settled in his hutch, and A-Zhan got A-Yuan situated with a coloring book and crayons.

“I should change,” Wei Ying said, remembering his torn jeans and the shirt Lan Qiren might be able to decode.

He’d probably think Wei Ying wore the shirt on purpose to send a message. Frankly, Wei Ying wouldn’t mind that interpretation, but he didn’t want to antagonize.

“What you are wearing is fine,” A-Zhan said, catching his wrist. “He interrupted our day, and he can get us as we are.”

A-Zhan was still wearing the frog bucket hat, with apparently no intent on removing it. His light blue shirt, Wei Ying noticed for the first time, was the one with a print of a rabbit wearing glasses and a bow tie, with ‘daddy’ in script underneath. Wei Ying snagged his hat with the bunnies and carrots motif from where he’d placed it atop the bunny hutch and put it back on. They’d match, to a certain extent, present a united front.

“Be good for popo,” A-Zhan directed A-Yuan, as though their son would ever be anything but good.

The boy simply nodded and discarded his crayon to run over and hug them both.

The first two floors of the building were Dafan Applications office space. Though the first floor also held a lovely coffee shop and several other stores open to the public, the core of the building was the headquarters. An elevator and staircase serviced the offices, accessible with employee IDs. Each office was accessible only by swiping employee IDs, and record was kept of who entered and when.

Since the apartments were held entirely by family, it might have seemed paranoid, but Wei Ying was glad for the security the building had—after all, the lack of it at Gusu Lan Tech had led to him being framed for corporate espionage. Poorly, but it ultimately hadn’t mattered.

He hadn’t understood why he’d been framed, only that he’d had to correct Su She’s subpar coding many times when he’d worked there, so it wasn’t very surprising that he’d fuck up installing the code to the point where it would be caught before it could do damage. Since he’d never been anything but pleasant to Su She, that he’d been targeted had surprised him.

When he had mentioned his confusion to A-Zhan, about a week after the news broke, he learned that Su She had tried to tell A-Zhan that Wei Ying was a poor choice as a romantic partner, implying he would be better.

“I told him he was not qualified to speak with me,” A-Zhan had recollected.

It made a sick sort of sense—if Wei Ying was out of the way, fired or imprisoned, Su She might think he had a shot. And given that Lan Qiren had hated him even before he and A-Zhan started dating, the frame up job was sufficient.

A-Zhan took his hand and led him into the elevator, and he realized he must have blanked out because he hadn’t even heard it arrive. His husband was watching him in concern, and he hated how much this invasion by Lan Qiren was messing with him, but he absolutely wasn’t going to abandon A-Zhan to face him alone.

“I’m okay,” Wei Ying said. “I just want to get it over with.”

Uncle Four was waiting for them by the elevators. He offered a smile.

“I’ll bring by a few bottles of my newest brew later,” he said in greeting.

“That bad, huh?” Wei Ying asked ruefully.

“I don’t wish to speak ill of A-Zhan’s family,” Uncle Four said deferentially.

‘But that man…’ was heavily implied.

A-Zhan inclined his head.

“He decided Wei Ying’s guilt on flimsy evidence,” his husband said, his tone dismissive.

Wei Ying squeezed his hand—it was as close to disparaging as A-Zhan had ever come toward his uncle. More often, they simply pretended he didn’t exist, which prior to this had been fairly easy. When they had spoken of it, when he had finally told A-Zhan in one of his darker moments what Lan Qiren had said to him when running him out of Gusu Lan Tech with security, his husband had simply folded him in his arms and told him he was wrong, over and over again, and reiterated that he had chosen Wei Ying.

A-Zhan was angry, he realized. Perhaps over Lan Qiren returning to their life with all of his customary arrogance, or perhaps in defense of his brother, who was being excised from the company. He remembered, early in their relationship, learning that both brothers had been told what to major in, prepped for what Lan Qiren thought their careers should look like at Gusu Lan, which was why A-Zhan hadn’t been able to pursue music as he had wished. It was why he had expected him to break up with him, as ordered.

He wondered what Lan Xichen had given up, what dreams he had let go to serve his family.

“Tomorrow,” he told Uncle Four. “I think we’ll need tonight for us.”

The older man offered a sympathetic smile and escorted them to the conference room.

It was the ostentatious one they used for particularly obnoxious or status-obsessed clients, with handsomely-carved panels with the Dafan Applications logo and an imposing table that looked expensive but were actually the work of a family member with a woodworking hobby. It had two doors, one on either side of the long table, which was ideal—they wouldn’t have to walk past Lan Qiren to get in or out.

When they entered, Wei Ying’s gaze was drawn to Lan Xichen first, seated at the side of the table. He looked… defeated was the first word to come to mind. He glanced at his husband, could see he too was looking at his brother, concerned lines at the corners of his eyes betraying his emotions.

“Finally,” Lan Qiren commented, drawing their attention. “I don’t have all day.”

His gaze was, as usual, disapproving, and he completely disregarded the fact that he had been the one to crash their day, not the other way around.

“My husband told you to schedule an appointment,” A-Zhan said in lieu of greeting.

He tugged Wei Ying to the head of the table, where someone had thoughtfully placed two chairs. Qing-jie was his guess, letting them present as the team they were. She was on one side of the table beside the seats, and Uncle Four sat on the other, probably as owner of the building. Wen Ning was too faint-hearted to handle this, he knew, even though he was technically the head of Dafan Applications.

“An appointment, to see my own nephew?” Lan Qiren grated, glaring at Wei Ying like it was his fault.

“You told me five years ago that I was no nephew of yours,” A-Zhan said, his voice dispassionate.

Wei Ying knew how much that had hurt A-Zhan. Part of him wanted to tell Lan Qiren that, rail at him over every emotional scar he had inflicted on the both of them, but he also knew there was no point in it—he wouldn’t listen, and he knew well enough that it wouldn’t be cathartic. It was better to let A-Zhan get this over with and be here to support him.

“You were making a mistake!”

His continued glaring at Wei Ying made it obvious what “mistake” he was referring to, and he barely managed not to flinch. It was clear this conversation was not going to be pleasant. A-Zhan took his hand, lacing their fingers together and squeezing gently.

“As I recall, the evidence that he was not making a mistake has been all over the news,” Wen Qing drawled.

“What business is it of yours?” Lan Qiren demanded. “Why are you here?”

“As witnesses,” she replied. “And A-Zhan and A-Ying are family. We’re here for them.”

Warmth spread through Wei Ying’s chest at her pronouncement—he often referred to her as Qing-jie, but hadn’t known the sentiment was returned.

“And I own the building in which you are currently trespassing,” Uncle Four added.

Where he was normally a jovial and friendly man, his expression was serious and bordering on unwelcoming. Apparently Lan Qiren had made quite the impression on him.

Lan Qiren sniffed disdainfully, but finally focused on A-Zhan.

“The board has decided Xichen’s… indiscretions make him unfit to head the company. You have been appointed in his place. You will, of course, be expected to take the Lan name again, as will the child you’ve adopted. I’ve taken the liberty of securing housing for you, and I suppose we can find a place in the company for your husband, on a provisionary basis, of course.”

Dead silence followed his pronouncement, and Wei Ying felt dizzy with the presumption of all of this—A-Zhan was being ordered back to Gusu Lan Tech as though this wasn’t the first they’d seen or heard from Lan Qiren in over five years, clearly expected to obey without question.

“Provisionary?” A-Zhan murmured, his voice icy with what Wei Ying recognized as fury.

He squeezed A-Zhan’s hand, silently asking that he not be angry on his behalf. After all, he expected nothing but this treatment from Lan Qiren, so he wasn’t surprised to receive it.

“He’ll be expected to prove himself, of course.”

“He already has,” Wen Qing cut in. “He’s been an asset to Dafan Applications since the day we hired him, paramount to our success.”

Lan Qiren sniffed dismissively.

“Yes, well, his previous stint of employment at Gusu Lan Tech left much to be desired.”

A-Zhan’s jaw clenched. Wei Ying’s stomach roiled, remembering the constant criticism he’d faced there, how ultimately he wondered why they’d even agreed to hire him.

“I will not subject my husband to further abuse at the hands of the company that attempted to ruin his career.”

To his surprise, Lan Qiren looked satisfied by that statement.

“Then we’ll arrange for your move. You’ll be expected to dress more professionally in the future, as the representative of the company.”

He eyed A-Zhan’s hat and clothing with distaste.

Wei Ying stole a glance at Xichen, who looked haggard and drained and was barely listening to the conversation, and felt empathy for his situation. Xichen had always treated him kindly, until he went no-contact after A-Zhan’s resignation, something he was likely ordered to do. Even so, he also sought to warn them of what had happened, and had informed A-Zhan of Lan Qiren’s intentions. And he had stood fast against the board’s desire to have him prosecuted.

And now the man he had been set to marry is in prison, having brought Nie Innovations to its knees and attempted the same with Gusu Lan Tech, and what happiness he’d been looking forward to was just so much smoke.

“You misunderstand,” A-Zhan said. “I do not intend to relocate, or take on the Lan name, or chair Gusu Lan Tech. I will continue to work at Dafan and live in my apartment with my husband and our son. I will remain Wei Zhan.”

Lan Qiren looked shocked, almost as though he had been physically slapped, and then the anger returned.

“You leave me no choice. It will be a simple matter to buy out Dafan,” he said.

Wen Qing laughed at the threat.

“Dafan Applications is a worker cooperative. You have no power.”

For the first time he’d known him, Lan Qiren seemed incapable of words. After all, it meant that he and A-Zhan were part owners of Dafan, as all employees were, something he would never offer at Gusu Lan. Wei Ying privately hoped he was having an internal fit over the socialism of worker cooperatives.

A-Zhan, however, had plenty to say.

“You disrupted our Saturday after five years of silence to demand I change my life to suit your whims,” A-Zhan said coldly. “You didn’t even have the grace to apologize to Wei Ying, whose life and career you tried to destroy.”

Lan Qiren’s expression turned stormy.

“You chose this ill-bred miscreant over your family, and you expect me to apologize to him?”

“No,” A-Zhan said. “I chose the truth. I chose love. A-Ying is my family.”

“You,” Lan Qiren snarled, turning his attention to Wei Ying. “This rebellion is all your influence! A-Zhan was filial until you came along!”

Wei Ying stayed silent. His anxiety spiked but was soothed by A-Zhan’s hand in his, in the feeling of his fingers entwined. Lan Qiren could do nothing to them—he’d already tried, and they’d ultimately come out stronger. They’d built a life and found new family.

There was so much he could say, but he knew better than to think Lan Qiren would listen; he was a convenient scapegoat, and nothing would convince him otherwise.

“Have you nothing to say, you ingrate?” Lan Qiren demanded.

A-Zhan tensed, but Wei Ying squeezed his hand.

“I see no point in speaking to you,” he said honestly.

“You dare!”

Lan Qiren stood, quivering with rage.

“You broke our family as completely as you broke the Jiangs, and you have the gall to sit there smirking, enjoying the mess you’ve made!”

Mention of the Jiangs hurt—it had been weeks and only A-Li had reached out, but she had never broken contact to begin with.

Wen Qing slapped the table and stood, startling them.

“I’ve heard quite enough. You can’t bully your estranged nephew into uprooting the life he built after you alienated him, so you go after A-Ying again. You act the victim, but you drove A-Zhan away with your unmerited vitriol toward A-Ying.”

Uncle Four stood as well. He was a calm man, but Wei Ying could see him tremble—in anger or nervousness, he didn’t know.

“You are not welcome here, Lan Qiren. Leave or you will be removed.”

“And given that you attempted to poach two of our best employees and threatened our company, you can tell your board that Dafan Applications will never do business with Gusu Lan Tech,” Wen Qing added.

Wei Ying knew her level of petty and wondered if their new apps would unexpectedly glitch on Gusu Lan products in the future. Probably not, since she was focused on user experience.

Maybe he was the one feeling petty, but he doubted anyone who mattered would judge him for it.

“Clearly attempting to reason with any of you is an exercise in futility,” Lan Qiren said.

It took far too much energy to suppress a nearly-hysterical giggle building in Wei Ying’s chest at his complete lack of self awareness.

“Come, Xichen. We’re done here.”

A-Zhan bristled further, glancing at Wei Ying with a question in his eyes, and he nodded. Xichen deserved to know he still had family.

“Xiongzhang may stay for dinner, if he wishes,” A-Zhan said. “Our son would love to meet his bobo.”

A tiny smile lit up Xichen’s features, and Wei Ying got the impression it was the first time he’d smiled since his fiancé’s arrest.

“I would be honored to,” he said softly.

His voice was hoarse, as though he was no longer used to speaking, or was overcome with emotion. It could easily be both.

“Thank you, didi.”

Lan Qiren scoffed, and Wen Qing pointed at the door, raising an eyebrow. When he stomped out, she and Uncle Four followed him to escort him from the premises, leaving the three of them alone.

“Were you offered another position in the company?” A-Zhan asked after a moment of uncomfortable silence.

Xichen shook his head, the fleeting smile gone.

“No. Uncle believes I need time to reflect on my mistakes.”

Wei Ying didn’t hold back a scoff, given that Lan Qiren had referred to him as A-Zhan’s mistake.

“You didn’t make any mistakes. You had no way of knowing.”

The smile Xichen offers is wrong, bitter.

“I should have done more. Instead of letting them scapegoat you, I should have insisted on a full investigation. Maybe we would have uncovered the truth and protected you. Maybe we could have prevented the damage to Nie Innovations and Mingjue’s health, too.”

He had forgotten that Xichen and Mingjue were friends somehow. Wei Ying wanted to tell him the guilt he carried was a burden that shouldn’t be his, but he also knew from struggling with his own that it was something Xichen would need to come to terms with himself.

“You should reach out to him,” A-Zhan said, looking at Wei Ying like he knew what he was thinking. “I doubt he blames you, and perhaps he could use the help.”

Xichen looked torn on the idea. Wei Ying could almost see the thoughts running through his head—that he would be unwelcome, a burden on his friend, but that it was a way to do penance for the sins he believed he’d committed.

“I’ll think about it,” he finally said.

Wei Ying walked around the table and patted his shoulder, gesturing to the other door, the one that led to the interior of the building. A-Zhan had offered an olive branch with the invitation, and this was his.

“Come on. Popo is cooking, and Auntie Three made baozi for the whole building. And A-Yuan is waiting.”

The smile returned, a little stronger this time, and Wei Ying smiled back as Xichen levered out of his seat to follow them home.

-------------

Jin Zixun’s background is maybe based on a very well-known “journalist” who just constantly looks confused and outraged. To narrow it down, John Oliver did a segment on him recently. Uh, and maybe slightly on two other conspiracy theorists who pretend at journalism, one of whom keeps getting sued.

Also, I am old enough to text in full sentences most of the time. I had some friends check over Wei Ying’s panic texts so hopefully they’re believable.

This was difficult to write because of the anxiety Wei Ying was feeling and the uncomfortable conversations.

Also, I forgot the Nie company name and had to check—I couldn’t remember if it was Nie Innovations or Nie Industries. Turns out I accidentally used both in the first fic in the series. Fixed it now.

I maybe spent too much time researching worker cooperatives and employee-owned companies. It’s not a major part of this fic, but I thought it was a cool detail to bring in.

The title is, again, from the Li Bai poem.

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wangxianfics · 4 years ago

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There was a fic that I *thought* I had bookmarked, but apparently not... Wei Wuxian was a journalist and adopted Sizhui & was bringing him home to meet Lan Wangji and there was an accident and everyone thinks WWX is dead but it was *Mo Xuanyu* who died protecting Sizhui? And LWJ has been raising him but now WWX woke from a coma or whatever? Do you know which fic this is???

Hello nonny! You're looking for:

These Things Stay the Same by notevenyou (30K, Explicit)

(Modern AU, Kid Fic, Journalist!WWX, Injury, Hospitalization, Angst With a Happy Ending)

After a career covering news across the world, journalist Wei Wuxian is unexpectedly on his way home with a child in tow. Unfortunately, the path home isn't without obstacles.

#ask

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wangxianficrecs · 4 years ago

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when we’re full of stories to be told by fakeplasticlily

when we’re full of stories to be told

by fakeplasticlily

M, 45k, wangxian

Summary: Flushing in embarrassment, Wei Ying hurries over to A-Yuan and crouches to place his hands on his shoulders. “A-Yuan, that’s enough,” he says. “Sorry, Lan Zhan, he used to go to a different bookstore where they host regular storytimes, I think he thinks you’re the designated storyteller for the day—”

He gets to his feet, holding A-Yuan at his hip, and glances up to look at Lan Zhan. It’s an awful, terrible, horrible mistake. This close, every detail of his face is utterly inescapable.

“Story time,” says A-Yuan, lower lip wobbling dangerously.

Wei Ying glances around, finding people staring curiously at the scene unfolding before them. “A-Yuan,” he hisses urgently. “We need to go. I’ll tell you a story on the way home, okay?”

“Do you really need to go?”

Wei Ying starts at Lan Zhan’s voice. He’s still looking steadily at him, an unreadable expression in his eyes.

(Seven years after running away from home to pursue a story that would expose one of the biggest media scandals in recent years, Wei Ying runs into the last person he’s expecting to see at a quaint, forgotten bookstore he hasn’t set foot in for a very long time.)

My comments: In which wwx returns from many years in hiding after his investigative journalism took down Wen Rouhan's media empire. He'd left not only his family, but also his dearest friend, Lan Wangji, who has since become a brilliant (and reticent) author. This particular week, he needs to keep A-Yuan, his boss's nephew, as she struggles to keep their little magazine afloat and tells him to try to get an interview with the author Lan Wangji (not knowing their past).

So A-Yuan is adorable, Lan Zhan is smitten, and wwx is thick as a brick. There are feels, and pining, and misunderstandings and bunny stories. There is a bit of intrigue, when wwx learns that someone is about to leak lwj's new novel. There are supportive siblings (long-sufferingly waiting for both boys to Figure Their Shit Out). There is one (1) VERY hot makeout in a car. (And a bedroom, and a lobby.)

modern au, journalist wei wuxian, reporter wei wuxian, writer lan wangji, novelist lan wangji, kid fic, because A-Yuan, childhood friends, there is a Past, miscommunication, fluff, angst, pining, oblivious wei wuxian, insecure wei wuxian, UST, RST, happy ending, @fakeplasticlily

(You may wish to REBLOG as a signal boost for this author if you like – or think others might like – this story.)

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thewangxianlibrary · 4 years ago

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Wangxian Fic Recs - Modern Setting AU

Plant a little happiness (let the roots run deep) | Words: 47,638 | E

After thirteen years away, Dr. Wei Wuxian is back in Gusu. A car accident near his apartment brings someone unexpected back into his life and everything changes for the better.

and so my heart beats wildly | Words: 106,435 | E

“You know, you’re the one to beat this year,” Jiang Cheng offers helpfully, having seen the glare from right next to him. “Hanguang-jun’s been through juniors with the rest of us, he knows all of our tics. You’re an unknown variable, since he’s never competed against you before.”

“Thanks,” says Wei Wuxian drily. “That’s very comforting.”

Or: five nighthunting competitions where Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji were rivals, and one where they weren't.

Unstrictly Ballroom | Words: 47522 | T

Thirteen years ago, Wei Wuxian brought scandal and shame down upon his head and was thrown out of the competitive ballroom dance circuit. He vanished, never to be heard from again.

Lan Wangji aches when he remembers the way Wei Ying danced--like a laugh given movement and form. He has never stopped searching for him.

Let You Love Me (Always) | Words: 14853 | E

“I can't even imagine what kind of person Lan Wangji fell in love with,” Wei Wuxian admitted.

He felt his stomach being tied in knots, and it almost felt painful and definitely unpleasant, just trying to imagine the person that probably had Lan Wangji on his knees.

Or the story where Wei Wuxian was a bully and Lan Wangji was patiently waiting.

Some of You | Words: 60,640 | M

It can’t be that bad, he thinks. There’s no way he would have done that. But the doubt still lingers, turning into full-blown anxiety as he scrolls down his twitter feed, finally arriving on his latest tweet.

Lan WangJi ✔ @lan_wangji

Some of you have never fallen in love with a boy only for him to go missing after his parents die and pine away for three years waiting for him to come back, then continue to pine when he’s back after you realize you’re too scared to confess, and it shows.

23,043 retweets | 73,328 likes

Lan Zhan’s face pales and he buries his head in his hands, letting his phone drop on the table.

This is bad.

This is very, very bad.

Or, Lan Wangji gets drunk and tweets a love confession, Wei Wuxian panics, and all of twitter decides to matchmake Lan Wangji and his mystery guy.

Out of the Bin and Into Your Heart | Words: 27,675 | T

"Lan Zhan!” Wuxian exclaims as soon as the door to Lan Wangji's apartment opens.

“Fake-date me!” The door slams shut in his face.

or, The Best Laid Plans of Wei Wuxian.

nginal Equivalents | Words: 23,444 | E

He always gets the feeling there is something there, beyond the occasional jabs and the mostly one-sided banter and the way Lan Wangji has tolerated his rambles and teasing all these years and how he has caught him looking at him sometimes with his eyes softer than he has ever seen them.

But whatever that is makes his heart clench painfully and beat a million miles an hour, and that can’t be good for you, can it? As a self-respecting neurosurgery resident he can’t ignore the symptoms of an imminent heart attack, can he?

Or: How Wei Wuxian learnt to stop worrying and love his co-resident.

the moon lives in the lining of your skin | Words: 9,143 | M

“Let go,” Lan Wangji says.

“Huh?” Wei Wuxian tightens his hold on Lan Wangji. “Why?”

“If you don’t let go,” Lan Wangji tells him, reaching up to cover one of Wei Wuxian’s hands with his own, squeezing lightly, “then I can’t get up.”

“And what will you do once you get up?” Wei Wuxian asks. “Will er-gege punish me for being shameless?”

(Or, oh my god, they were roommates.)

boyfriend material | Words: 41,689 | M

Lan Xichen would do anything if it meant his brother was happy, which is what lead him to eavesdropping on the Jiang brothers as they discussed their requirements for a partner.

Or; Lan Wangji attempts to woo an already infatuated Wei Ying using bad pickup lines, and a few more things.

Love wakes me | Words: 42,812 | E

It starts with a bet. All mistakes, Wei Wuxian thinks, start with a bet.

It’s starts with a bet and ends with Wei Wuxian losing everything.

Nine years ago, Wei Wuxian made a bet with disastrous consequences. Now, he is part-owner of the popular and eclectic Yiling Cafe, years and miles away from his old life, making the best of things and trying to leave the past where it belongs. When Lan Wangji walks into his cafe by accident, Wei Wuxian finds himself doing what he thought he'd never do again; reclaiming some small part of his past, and hoping for a future he'd given up as lost.

These Things Stay the Same | Words: 29,937 | E

After a career covering news across the world, journalist Wei Wuxian is unexpectedly on his way home with a child in tow. Unfortunately, the path home isn't without obstacles.

your heartbeat, across the grass | Words: 44,278 | E

To his unbridled horror, Wei Wuxian sees his face up on the giant screen in real time for the entire stadium to see. Still laughing as his face takes a moment to catch up with the sheer mortification he’s feeling, A-Yuan perched on his shoulders as the Lan Wangji cape drapes over them.

There’s also commentary.

“—scenes from the stands here, this dad and his son making for an adorable twosome all decked out in support for local hero Lan Wangji—”

“—Speaking of, our man seems to have taken a little tumble—”

Wei Wuxian finds Lan Wangji on the field. The ball is nowhere near him but he seems to have fallen inexplicably backwards, sitting on the grass as he looks up at the giant screen.

Right up at the footage of him.

(AU where A-Yuan is professional footballer Lan Wangji's biggest fan, and his babysitter Wei Wuxian wants nothing more than to forget his days as the photographer of their school football team, calling out to the captain from the stands just so he'd look around at him.)

with you, I am home | Words: 47,049 | M

“I can’t go back home alone, Lan Zhan.”

Wei Wuxian gets a summons to return to Lotus Pier for marriage proposals. To avoid this, he convinces Lan Zhan to come with him and pretend to be his cultivation partner.

it's the little things, you see? | Words: 30024 | T

Hot Stuff’s lips part and his voice— God, his voice —flows past his lips like honey dripping from its jar.

“Are you—”

“Will you marry me?”

Nailed it.

Where single parent Wei Ying greets his son’s preschool teacher— on the first day they meet —with a marriage proposal.

Wei Ying spends the changing seasons wooing said preschool teacher in full-force, no holds barred.

Lan Zhan’s life does a full 360 degree turn when two balls of unrestrained energy land themselves in front of his classroom.

And as the seasons change, so do they.

The Simplest Way Forward | Words: 71,008 | E

It’s a really unfortunate thing, developing a crush on your husband. Wei Ying had assumed this would be easy. Lan Zhan had been so icy and unpleasant to him, it had never occurred to him that he might end up spending the next however many years with this dumb, burning feeling in his chest whenever he looks at him.

“Okay,” says Wei Ying. “But tell me if I…if the pretending gets to be too hard, okay?”

“It will not,” says Lan Zhan, quietly certain.

Pretty Things | Words: 25,520 | T

The thing was...Wei WuXian was right. It did suit him. Jiang Cheng took in everything—from the lively red of his nails, to the way he had braided and wrapped his hair in twin buns, leaving his bangs to curl becomingly over his cheeks, to the red silk of his calf-length silk cheongsam with black chrysanthemums blooming over his right shoulder and down the split on the left side of the skirt, to his shapely, shaved legs. And what tied it all together was the way he carried himself. Wei WuXian smiled impishly, pleased to know he was right, that he looked good, and that others would agree. Doubtless, he would be out drinking until the early hours as patrons vied to buy him drinks after the end of his shift.

Operation Old Men | Words: 37645 | NR

An ill-fated parent teacher conference reunites Jin Ling's wayward uncle with Sizhui's father. AKA: A matchmaking disaster as told by Jin Ling, Sizhui, and Jingyi.

Jin Ling knows he’s in deep trouble even before reporting to Headmaster Lan’s office, but the words “your uncle will be here soon” still strike the fear of God in him. His only consolation is that Jingyi and Sizhui’s guardians are also in the office, Jingyi’s mom already lecturing her sheepish-looking son. Lan-ayi only stops when Sizhui’s father, a quiet and tall man in white, clears his throat, causing her to engage him in one-sided smalltalk.

This is a disaster. Jin Ling had spent such a nice break at home for Mid-Autumn Festival, and Fairy’s presence had soothed his homesickness after returning to boarding school in Gusu. He knows pets aren’t allowed, but who is going to report Jin Ling when his father pays good money for a private suite in the dorms? Then there was the incident with Jingyi, a box of mooncakes, and a door left ajar. Long story short, he spent an hour chasing Fairy down the halls with Sizhui and Jingyi before finding his dog nosing up to a very angry Headmaster Lan.

#wangxian #wangxian fic rec #mdzs #CQL #the untamed #modern setting au #au: modern setting #fic rec list #wangxian fic rec list

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