#reverse nie bros

[jaimebluesq]

For the Nie Mingjue prompt: He's not everyone's Da-ge, he's everyone's didi!

And if you're not feeling the age swap situation, then maybe canonverse NMJ loses his memory somehow (curse? qi deviation unusual effects?) and needs everyone's help to remember who he is (but specially Huaisang’s 🥺)

Damn, how did this prompt go over 2k?! *Ahem*.

Thank you so much for this prompt! I very much enjoy reverse Nie bros! I got to write then once before and decided to turn this prompt into a sequel (but you don't need to have read Maybe if the stars align, maybe if our worlds collide to follow the worldbuilding!)

So, on to the prompt fill - I hope you enjoy :D

~ ~ ~

Nie Huaisang bit his lip in thought, and a little frustration. He’d been to the rooms assigned to the Lan sect, and hadn’t found his brother anywhere – normally Lan Qiren would have absconded Nie Mingjue somewhere to discuss night hunts, or Lan Xichen would have dragged him away somewhere for tea, but neither had seen him since the banquet that evening. Nor was Nie Mingjue among the Jin – they were in Koi Tower, after all, and the sects had been invited for a grand celebration on Jin Zixuan’s birthday, and though the boy was vain and snobbish at times, he often came out of his shell to take Nie Mingjue under his wing and show him around the grounds or take him to spar on the training field. Nie Mingjue had certainly not been among the Wen – even after Wen Ruohan’s ‘mysterious’ death two years ago, the Nie and the Wen were far from friendly, even if Wen Xu’s reign was nowhere near as contentious as his father’s (Nie Huaisang was quite thankful that he, rather than Wen Chao, had come out on top when the two brothers fought for dominion over their sect).

He was finishing looking around the smaller sects’ delegations, intending to head for the Jiangs’ quarters next, when he was stopped by a feminine voice nearby. “Oh, Nie-zongzhu? It’s quite fortunate that I found you!”

He lifted his fan to cover his frown and sighed. It was Sect Leader Yao’s sister, of course it was. She was nowhere as unpleasant as her brother, thankfully, but she did have a habit of making a nuisance of herself. Particularly to him.

“Ah, Yao-guniang, I hope you’ve been enjoying the birthday celebrations. How may I assist you?”

She fluttered her eyelashes coquettishly and waved her round fan over her chest – her neckline showing far more cleavage than was proper. Normally he would not mind – he did have a reputation for enjoying the company of women (and men), after all – but he knew she’d had particular designs on him for two years now.

“I heard that the matchmakers have been a great bother to Nie-zongzhu of late,” she offered with an attractive pout. “So disrespectful to hound such a great man, no doubt still grieving the late Madame Nie. I would be more than happy to have a word or two with them, if it would help.”

Yes, the matchmakers had been on his case of late to petition for various women wishing to be the next Madame Nie. He knew he would have to accept one eventually, but he had yet to decide upon what alliance would be most advantageous. Most believed he was still mourning the ‘accidental’ death of his wife during a night hunt – the better that they did not think further upon the timing of her death with that of Wen Ruohan. While they had not been a love match, Yu Jinzhu and he had developed an affection for one another, and he knew she would not want her sacrifice in pursuit of assassinating Wen Ruohan to put his sect in danger.

He also knew that Yao YuFeng’s offer was far from altruistic – she’d had designs on becoming the next Madame Nie since the day of the funeral.

“That is very kind of Yao-guniang,” he said with a charming smile that prompted her fan to move a little faster, “but this one is not afraid of the matchmakers. When I am ready to marry again, only then will I have need of them. But until that time, I have a sect to run, and a brother to find.”

“Is your Didi lost again?” Her smile and chuckle were now far more genuine. “He’s grown to be such a handsome boy, and a great cultivator even at his age! And I have yet to meet a girl who can resist the temptation to pinch his cheeks when his dimples show.”

“Yes, that’s the very reason why I lose him so often. He’s far too happy to help anyone who asks, and is often led astray.” He gave a long-suffering sigh. “If I allowed him, he would go weeks without seeing his Da-ge and spend all of his time helping people in need. My Didi forgets me so!”

“Such a thing is impossible,” she replied. “Everyone knows Nie Mingjue adores his brother and threatens anyone who even thinks of questioning the way you run your sect. He is a credit to Qinghe Nie, and to his Da-ge.”

He tilted his head in thanks at her kind words. “Your kindness does your sect credit, Yao-guniang. Now if you’ll forgive me, a process of elimination is leading me to the Jiang sect’s quarters – hopefully I’ll find my misplaced Didi there.”

“I wish you the best of luck, Nie-zongzhu,” she offered with a short bow, that he echoed.

Thankfully, she had the grace to leave his side, allowing him to continue on his way.

He took a path through the gardens outside on his way to the Jiang delegation’s rooms, enjoying the cool night air, and he spotted a pair of figures sitting outside in the lantern-light. The two boys seemed to be pouting – well, one looked positively grumpy, while the other one pouted only a little as he bumped his shoulder into the other’s. But the moment Nie Huaisang came close enough to be lit by the lanterns, both boys jumped up onto their feet and made proper bows.

“Nie-zongzhu!” they chorused.

“You’ve been enjoying the celebrations, I hope!” Wei Wuxian crowed with a charming grin.

“Are you here to get Nie-xiong?” Jiang Cheng added, a little too much hope in his voice.

Nie Huaisang did his best not to let a smirk creep upon his face.

“I have been searching for him,” he replied, “and this was my next stop. I do hope my Didi hasn’t been too much of a nuisance.”

“Nie-xiong is never a bother,” Jiang Cheng replied – unsurprising, since he and Nie Mingjue had been close since they were young, and Jiang Cheng had yet to refuse an invitation to come to Qinghe and visit with Jasmine, Princess, and Love.

“Not a bother – but he is a thief,” Wei Wuxian countered unapologetically.

Nie Huaisang lifted his fan to cover his silent chuckle. “Well, would you be so kind as to escort me to my thieving Didi?”

“Of course! Right this way, Nie-zongzhu,” Wei Wuxian offered in a way that was almost flirtatious – ah, to be fifteen again.

As the three of them walked, Nie Huaisang was reminded of how fast these young cultivators grew up. When he’d first taken over as sect leader, he’d been their age, and they had been but children playing at being cultivators. And now they were all grown, and already taller than he was. At times he felt like an ant wandering among trees.

Jiang Cheng knocked on a door and opened it, calling out: “Jiejie! We have a visitor!”

Inside the luxuriously appointed guest rooms, Jiang Yanli had set up a table with tea and many kinds of food – and across from her, shyly accepting an affectionate pat on the head, was Nie Huaisang’s missing Didi. The two looked up at their entrance and Nie Mingjue’s face lit up.

“Da-ge!”

“So this is where you’ve been hiding, A-Jue,” he teased. He knew his brother and that his absences were rarely purposeful – he had simply been ‘adopted’ by so many older disciples that constantly sought him out, wanting to spoil him or teach him or drag him out on night hunts. “I’ve been looking for you for nearly an hour.”

Nie Mingjue looked sheepish; he stood up and bowed to his brother. “This one apologizes to Nie-zongzhu.”

“No apologies necessary, something simply came up at the last minute.” Nie Huaisang turned to Jiang Yanli. “I hope Jiang-guniang does not mind me stealing back my brother.”

“Of course, Nie-zongzhu,” she replied kindly with an elegant bow. “Had I known he was missing, I would have sent him back to your delegation’s rooms.”

“No harm is done – and there are few I trust with my brother’s welfare as much as you and your family.” She tilted her head in thanks, her cheeks flushing brightly. Not for the first time did he think she would make an excellent wife – but not only was she betrothed to Jin Zixuan, but Yu Ziyuan had told him in no uncertain terms that her daughter (and son, for that matter) were off-limits to his wandering eyes.

But a man could still look and appreciate.

Everyone wished each other farewell for the night, and Nie Huaisang and his brother were finally en route to their rooms.

“Is something the matter, Da-ge?” Nie Mingjue asked quietly when they were finally alone.

“Nothing is wrong,” he replied, keeping his eyes ahead of him. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to look at his brother, but with how he had to crane his head up to look at him since his last growth spurt, it hurt his neck a lot less to keep his eyes on the path ahead. “But there is someone I want you to meet. Someone I believe has some potential in our sect, but who will require some time to adjust to our ways.” He paused as they passed a servant, and only continued once they were long past them. “Furthermore, I want to get your impression of them.”

“Of course,” Nie Mingjue replied. “Whatever I can do to help.”

He smiled to himself – this was why everyone wished Nie Mingjue were their little brother.

When they reached the Nie delegation’s quarters, one of their disciples held the door open for them as they entered. The healer within stood up and bowed in greeting.

“How is he?” Nie Huaisang asked her, glancing over to where a young man sat by the window. When he saw Nie Huaisang had returned, he stood up and lowered into a gracious bow of his own.

“Nothing that cannot be healed,” she replied reassuringly. “I’m more concerned at his malnourishment than I am the few scrapes and bruises he acquired today.”

He nodded and dismissed her with a wave of his fan. He stepped further into the room once the door clicked shut behind him. “Didi, I would like to introduce you to a young man I met earlier today. This is Meng Yao, and I have invited him to come back to Qinghe with us. He wishes to become a cultivator, and I believe we may have a place for him in the Unclean Realm.”

“It is an honour to meet you,” Meng Yao said in a practised tone of voice, the same one that had impressed Nie Huaisang upon their first meeting outside when the young man had stood up from the bottom of Koi Tower’s steps. He’d seen something in him immediately that he recognized – someone who did not have the same strength and skill with weapons that were the basis of many cultivators’ training, but instead he saw someone adept at the more subtle arts that Nie Huaisang called his own, that his father had brought in teachers from Meishan Yu to teach him many years ago.

In Meng Yao, he had seen himself.

“What happened to you?” Nie Mingjue asked bluntly, as was his way.

Meng Yao lifted a hand to self-sonsciously touch the darkened bruise on his cheek, and when he smiled, his lower lip showed red from where it had been split. “It is nothing, Nie-gongzi.”

“Was it a night hunt?” Nie Mingjue asked – Nie Huaisang said nothing, merely standing back and watching his brother. “Or bandits?”

The response was a wince, and Meng Yao shook his head. “It is nothing-”

Nie Mingjue's eyes narrowed. “Who hurt you? Only a coward hurts someone who can’t or won’t fight back.” He reached for his saber, strapped securely to his back, but he stopped when Meng Yao reached out a hand to stop him. “Point me their way and I’ll-”

“It’s all right, young master. I will be fine.” Meng Yao’s eyes softened noticeably the way so many others did when they thought Nie Mingjue’s righteousness adorable, and Nie Huaisang found nothing to indicate it was an act. “You need not worry about this one. I merely wish to do what I can to thank Nie-zongzhu for his kindness.”

“It’s almost time for bed,” Nie Huaisang announced. “Meng Yao, why don’t you escort my brother to his room and help him take his hair down for the night? It will give you a chance to better see some of his braids – they’re typical for our sect, and you may wish to wear some of your own one day.”

“It would be an honour, Nie-zongzhu,” Meng Yao replied.

Nie Mingjue snorted. “Right this way,” he mumbled, “and you can tell me how you got hurt.”

“As I told your brother, Nie-gongzi, it was but a simple tumble down the stairs...”

Nie Huaisang watched his brother and Meng Yao walk away. It was going to be interesting having one of Jin Guangshan’s bastards around – not that he’d revealed to the young man that he’d overheard that part of the encounter on the stairs – particularly one that, like everyone else, fell under the sway of Nie Huaisang’s Didi’s charm.

That night, when Nie Huaisang slipped into his empty bed, he allowed himself a moment of true weakness. Wen Ruohan was dead, but there would always be sect politics, and people needing his attention, and yao and ghosts to fight. At times he was overwhelmed by it all, truly overwhelmed in a way the Headshaker never was. But he had a duty to fulfill, a sect to lead, and a brother to protect – and if he could do what he could to make certain Nie Mingjue never had to worry about anything in life, then it would all be worth it – just like what it had secretly cost them all to take down Wen Ruohan.

He sent a silent prayer to Jinzhu – he really did miss her at times, political though their marriage had been – and one to his and Nie Mingjue’s parents as well. Then, pushing his anxiety aside, he rolled over and allowed sleep to claim him.

The End

[thebiscuiteternal]

I am a dumbass and accidentlly deleted the ask while trying to edit the draft, which meant typing it all over again, but here are some notes for the nonnie who asked for more of the reverse Nies with a larger age gap.

This Huaisang is probably one of my most quiet and withdrawn ones. Being the only child for so long meant he was given no slack by the grown-ups, so any frivolous things he likes are buried way, way down deep where they can't be mocked or taken away from him.

He still paints on the very rare occasions he can get time to himself, and he looks after the sect's hunting falcons with great zeal (a trait actually encouraged by Papa Nie, and the first thing they actually bonded over), but he never lets anyone see the paintings and he is so, so careful not to let himself get too caught up in wanting, or even looking at less "useful" birds.

Ironically, two of the people he was closest to before the murder were Wen Ruohan and Wen Xu.

The former was like an indulgent uncle (he thought at the time, though he came to question that quite a bit later), always praising his cleverness and never forgetting to bring a gift when he visited, and the latter was the one to sometimes drag him out of his metaphorical defensive shell and off on an 'adventure' (usually ending in some new food he'd never tried before).

He was introduced to the Lan heir and spare as a child, but he and Xichen never hit it off like Xichen and Mingjue would have (they're... okay, just kind of blandly polite to each other the way they'd be expected to be as sect leaders) and Wangji was of the age where he didn't like anybody.

Due to becoming sect leader on the same year he would have been sent to the lectures, he has to miss them. Lan Qiren "sells" him copies of the materials with the price being he has to keep up some kind of correspondence to show he's actually reading them at least occasionally. They become friends? Sort of? Though it's more like an amiable mentorship.

Mingjue is a rambunctious little hellion from day one. His laugh is loud, his crying is loud, and the only two people he actually calms down for are his wet nurse and Huaisang.

There are those in the sect who accuse Huaisang of trying to hoard Mingjue's attention and mold him into a less-than-proper heir to protect his position, which Huaisang tends to roll his eyes at because 1) who would want the kind of sect leader role he's been crammed into, and 2) it's deeply rich that they accuse him of doing the same thing they want to do to his baby brother.

Whenever Mingjue is being a particularly big handful, Huaisang calls him "Beastie"(<3) or "Little Monster"(<3), which just makes Mingjue laugh and laugh even though he has no idea what the words mean.

Mingjue's first word is "Ge" to the surprise of no one and the annoyance of many.

Mingjue's favorite animal in the whole wide world is tigers, and it's common to see him clutching a stuffed one as he snoozes in Huaisang's lap.

Once he's weaned, Mingjue loves mushed up fruit, but he likes gumming on preserved meat the most, because he is his father's son. Huaisang makes sure he always has snacks on him, and this also winds up forcing him to quit skipping meals because Mingjue gets snippy and won't eat without him.

There are nights where Huaisang is just so tired and so miserable from constantly fighting to do anything without being judged or second-guessed that he just wants to curl up in a ball and cry until he's empty, and then Mingjue will crawl across the bed and pap his face with little baby hands in a demand for sleep cuddles and the love of and from his baby brother is usually enough comfort to get him through to the next day.

[roseclaw]

He's here!!!! This is my first fanart in over 20 years! Of course, I had to make it Nie. This is for the MDZS Reverse Big Bang, and the fic accompanying it was written by @jaimebluesq!!!

Title: A Reluctant Pilgram's Tail

Rating: G

Word count: 26k

Relationships: Nie Bros, JC/NHS, NMJ/WQ

Tags:

Alternate Universe - Shapeshifters

Nie Bros Feels

Flashbacks

the romance is in the background

But is important to the plot

Coming of Age

Growing Up

And Leaving Home

Angst

Hurt/Comfort

If I had to cry so do you

Summary:

There is a secret in Qinghe Nie kept by all who reside in the Unclean Realm, that the clan's main family line are as much leopard as man. The clan's traditions have adapted to their leaders' unique instincts, but sometimes tradition isn't enough - some need to discover for themselves why leopards are known as solitary creatures...

Nie Huaisang never wanted to leave home, particularly not for a second year at Cloud Recesses. If it had been up to him, he'd have remained in the Unclean Realm forever, happily burdening his brother despite the growing animosity between them. But his second year is much better than the first, and by the time he returns home after several months away, he has new friends and new purpose in his life. Sadly... home no longer feels like home anymore.

[truly-morgan]

[You've got mail AU]

MingCheng | Mo Dao Zu Shi Cross-Over AU + cw: mention of suicide idea 19-05-2021

[#mingcheng you've got mail AU] (cw: maybe ooc nmj, age reverse, age gap, mention of sui.cide idea)

Jiang Cheng, who's the adviser in the Magistra office of lotus pier, has done so for many decades already and is tired of life, was ready to die at 40. but before doing so he wanted to tell his love for the pretty xxc, thinking that maybe finding a life partner could make him not await dying so he can be buried in his nice lot.

Sadly, xxc already has a (maybe two?) life partner, but he does direct him to the Peng Society, believing he could find a life partner in the same way he did with sl (and xy). adviser jiang is slightly unsure, but he does give it a try, going to the next city to meet up with the charming manager meng yao.

Adviser jiang who first nervously wanted to find a life partner now is collecting Pengornise (d!ck) picture that he is sent and has forgotten his want to die because of this. on the other end, General Nie Mingjue is keeping an iron grip on the northern border of the empire (please, let's forget that theoretically yunmeng and qingge are far from one another).

he is infatuated with his teacher [enter random original male character], but doesn't dare to do anything because he would dirty him. so he finds people who remind him of his teacher instead.

this is how he ends up interested in adviser jiang, as jc does look similar to his teacher (when you squint really hard and are blind). debut a relationship where jc is indeed happy to have such a great Pengornise, but also knows better than to love because of their social status (and past events, he knows better than to love so easily).

I could easily see nhs being man yue, a brother working with nmj, overworked a bit and scheming slightly in the back (especially to get his bro a good life partner).  lxc could be hei'er, one of nmj loyal man, but which is also the one who protects jc and has to deal with a rather difficult manager meng (xiyao anyone👀?).

neither lxc nor nhs likes the teacher and is very much ready to match nmj and jc (especially since they are not blind and do see how nmj treats and behaves around jc).

obv jc knows nmj is probably only using him, which doesn't really hurt at first since he managed to set his heart behind heavy walls (which is hard for nj once he actually figured his feeling for him).

maybe wx is the one who fucked over jc in the past? sweet-talking him because he clearly fell in love with him and used him to go to the capital to become an official. if I were to go father with the idea I would need to find how thing goes, since I wouldn't want to basically rewrite the same thing as the original novel (but with mingcheng).

anyway, here feed on what my brain came up with after finishing reading ygm:ct.

also I like the idea of 40 jc who's tired of life (until he discovers the joy of Pengornises!!) meeting young general nmj who fell hard for him without knowing it.

Original

[ibijau]

I’ve sent you an ask like this before but like. reverse au where nhs’ goal is wrh instead of jgy - imagining little nhs with his father’s blood on his saber unable to stop bawling but insisting that he has to go on trial for the murder of his father - being furious when he’s not pronounced guilty because it has to be someone’s fault - little nmj crying sympathy tears and trying to guard huaisang against whatever’s making him cry -

lxc only starts to let go of his jealousy of how frivolous sect leader nhs is allowed to be when wrh attacks nhs in the middle of a cultivation conference and is bravely defeated by now-jgy and lxc sees nhs first realize through his tears that wrh may have been the one to kill his father - he lets go of it entirely as he begins to suspect the decimation of the main branch of the wen clan took a lot more hard work than chance

oops, I went for something centered around the Nie brothers with this orz

It was just the three of them in that room when it happened, and though Mingjue is quite young, he is brought to testify at that trial his da-ge insists on having. When the elders ask, he explains that he had closed his eyes and didn't see much. He doesn’t tell them that his da-ge had just ordered him to close them. If it’s relevant, his da-ge will say something.

But Huaisang stays silent, except for some quiet sobbing.

“You didn’t see, but you heard,” one elder insists. “So what did you hear?”

“A-die was angry,” Mingjue replies, eyes darting toward his brother. “He was shouting at us.” He hesitates. “It’s words da-ge says I’m not allowed to know and if I use them around grown-ups I’ll be in trouble.”

The elders smile weakly at this well-behaved boy of seven.

“Just for today, you can say it. We need to understand, er-gongzi.”

Mingjue glances again at his brother. He only speaks again when his da-ge nods at him through his tears.

“A-die said that I was just the son of a whore and he was tired of me scheming against da-ge,” Mingjue recites, the accusation branded onto his mind. He can still hear the exact tone of his father’s voice, feel the power of his unrestrained aura oppressing him to the point he nearly fainted. “A-die also said that da-ge was a disgrace anyway and he was going to get rid of both of us and have real sons, instead of a Wen and a bastard. Then I heard blades hitting, and A-die shouted a-die couldn't hurt me, and there was a fight, and then everything was very quiet and da-ge said I needed to go get help.”

The elders nod solemnly. Huaisang sobs harder, his face awash with tears. He presses both hands against his mouth in an effort to keep quiet, so he won’t disturb the trial too much, but it’s not very efficient. Their cousin Zonghui, standing next to him, pats Huaisang’s shoulder to try to calm him.

“What did you see, before you left the room?” one elder asks.

Mingjue doesn’t answer right away. It’s fine to take time to remember, they told him early on, so he does that. In truth though, it’s not like he could ever forget the sight of his brother, usually so soft and funny, standing over the still twitching corpse of their father. He hasn’t forgotten that their father was breathing and even moaning when he left. He recalls, also, how different his da-ge had looked with his bloody sabre in hand, that hard look on his face.

When Mingjue had returned with help, his father had stopped breathing, and there was no hardness left to Huaisang who had dropped his sabre and was sobbing in a corner.

“There was a lot of blood,” Mingjue says, which isn’t a lie.

His eyes catch Huaisang’s. His da-ge, who doesn’t let anyone insult him for his mother, who told Mingjue many nice stories about her, since he never got to meet her. His da-ge who encourages him even when others say that the son of a servant shouldn’t be given the education of a young master, shouldn't dare to be better than children of higher birth. His da-ge, lazy and spoiled, but always putting in the effort when he feels Mingjue needs protecting.

It’s Mingjue’s turn to protect him now.

“I onlyremember the blood, and that I was scared,” he claims.

This time, it’s a lie.

But he can’t let them hurt his da-ge.

-

At the issue of that trial, it is decided that Huaisang acted out of self defence, and cannot be too harshly punished for the murder of his father. He has to offer sacrifices to the heavens and make public penance, but there won’t be lasting consequences, and he still gets to be sect leader.

Uncle Wen would not allow for anything else, Mingjue hears some of the elders whisper.

Uncle Wen went through a lot of trouble to make sure Qinghe Nie stopped bothering him, they also say. And now his sister’s child is ruling the only sect that used to stand up to him.

Huaisang laughs when Mingjue repeats this to him one night, while his da-ge puts him to bed for the night. Everything else has changed, but not this: Huaisang makes the time to take care of his didi, and Mingjue worries for his da-ge. Making time is harder than it used to be, the worries have become bigger than before, but fundamentally it’s still the same.

“Don’t listen to what those old farts say,” Huaisang advises as he tucks Mingjue under his blanket. “And don’t let them catch you listening, either. They’ll think you’re going to repeat things to me.”

“I do repeat things to you,” Mingjue points out. “And they shouldn’t be saying things like that. It’s not right to speak about people behind their back. A-die said people should speak their grievance in the light, or not at all.”

Huaisang smiles, and pets his hair.

“A-die was a good man,” he says. “Don’t let anyone make you forget that. A-die was the best man in the world. The way he was at the end, that wasn’t him. He was kind, and he loved you, and he was the best man any of us will ever meet… but this isn’t a world for good men.”

Mingjue frowns. His da-ge has always said odd things, but it has gotten worse lately.

“Da-ge is good too,” he mutters, unable to express the worry starting to form in his chest.

What he means is this: if good men are struck down by a cruel world, then his da-ge, who is good, might be at risk of dying. The thought terrifies him, and he would do anything to keep his da-ge alive. He lied for him at the trial, and he can do it again.

Huaisang laughs again.

“Don’t you worry about me!” he snickers, ruffling his brother’s hair. “I’m not good at all. Haven’t you heard people complain how little good I am?”

“You’re lazy not good, not bad not good,” Mingjue corrects. "Not like uncle."

Da-ge's good humour is shattered, replaced by a severe frown which makes him look too much like he did, that night their father died. Mingjue doesn't like it.

"MingMing, you remember the rule about uncle, right?"

"I don't say anything bad about uncle where others can hear," Mingjue meekly recites. "Only da-ge can say if it's safe to talk about uncle. Sorry. I know you didn't say."

"It's fine this time, but be more careful. Uncle is dangerous. He killed a-die, he'll kill us too if he realises we're not on his side. And we're not. Whose side are we on?"

"Each other," Mingjue dutifully replies.

He knows it's the right answer, but only if they're alone. If there are sect elders, Mingjue must claim loyalty to the sect. If they are in front of Wen Ruohan, he must say family. But the truest of truth is that he'd do anything for his da-ge, and da-ge has proven more than once he'd do anything for Mingjue.

"You're a good boy," da-ge said, ruffling his hair once more. "Don't think too much about these things. Da-ge will take care of all the problems for you."

"But I can help!"

"Yes you can," Huaisang agreed, pinching his cheek. "You can help by doing as you're told. Can you do that?"

Past events prove that Mingjue, on the whole, isn't good at doing what he's told, not when he thinks he's told to do something stupid. Sometimes, he makes a big argument about that. He's young, not stupid, and he doesn't want to do things just because grown-ups have ideas about how things should be.

But da-ge looks really tired tonight, and Mingjue doesn't want to become yet another problem on his brother's mind. So he nods dutifully.

It makes da-ge smile, so it was probably okay to lie.

[pngheavy]

dage loving hours (◡‿◡✿)

[eastofakkala]

I have a Harry Potter WIP which could really use a sequel. I have an Untamed modern AU in progress with my best friend and a second silly WIP I’m toying well. 

…but now I have yet another idea that I outlined over the course of one weekend and am naming OCs and it’s just wild. 

[robininthelabyrinth]

No fic today, but voting for the next bunch:

Untamed Nie bros time travel twist

age reversal

mo xuanyu sect leader short

wwx, with baby

wwx decides to become a healer

female!Meng Yao

wwx ghost marriage

some continuation (specify which you’d prefer out of Quiet Room, Polyphonic, Light on the Door - the rest need more time)

[queenofmoons67]

Reverse: A Nie Bros Short

@shiranai-atsune asked “what if NHS was the one who joined WRH as his subordinate, instead of JGY?”

Nie Mingjue had expected a lot of things when he raided the Nightless City. Huaisang’s head on a stake, at worst. Huaisang being held at sword point, used as a hostage to get Nie Mingjue to stand his forces down, at best. He hadn’t expected this.

No one had expected this.

And yet here Nie Mingjue was, kneeling in the Nightless City’s throne room, watching as Huaisang walked calmly to Wen Ruohan’s side.

The first thing Nie Mingjue noticed was that his brother looked different. The calm walk, when Huaisang usually flitted from place to place like the birds he so loved, was only the beginning. His hair was let down, too, and held perfectly in place with a topknot—no Nie braids in sight. And at his side—

Nie Mingjue flinched. Of all the weapons he had begged Huaisang to carry, a QishanWen sword had never been one of them.

“Do you like my latest disciple?” Wen Ruohan rasped, smirking. “When it became apparent that you had abandoned him to die, what choice did he have but to come to my side?”

Nie Mingjue stared at Huaisang. His brother’s eyes, deadened by his time in the Nightless City, stared back.

Surely his brother didn’t believe he’d been abandoned? Nie Mingjue had been many things, but he had always treasured his didi, and done his best to make sure Huaisang believed it.

And yet, when all of the other young disciples had escaped, Huaisang had been left behind—and Nie Mingjue had found himself able to do nothing but raise a force against QishanWen, hoping against hope that his brother had been granted a quick, painless death.

This was not what Nie Mingjue had had in mind.

“Huaisang,” he said helplessly, ignoring the sword that Wen Ruohan immediately pointed his way. “Didi. You have to believe me, I would have come if I could.”

“I have to?” Huaisang asked. His voice was high, nearly shrill, and Nie Mingjue flinched again. “Dage, I don’t have to believe anything. I was here. You were not. It’s that simple.”

Nie Mingjue bowed his head—but one word gave him pause. Dage? Why would Huaisang call him that, if he was as determined to cut their ties as he seemed?

Nie Mingjue bowed his head deeper to hide his smile. He had a feeling all was not as lost as it seemed. If there had been one person he had always been able to count on, it was his didi—and that man was still standing before him today.

[perpetuallytiredandtired]

For the age reversal au, can we have a scene where wangxian get married but from lxc perspective? Also what’s their age difference? I’ve always been confused about the lans and nies age differences

Lan Xichen serves tea for a good cause

Lan Xichen, is very excited for the start of the day, as today is Xiongzhang and Xian-gege’s wedding day. Usually, the Cloud Recesses is very quiet and tranquil, the white and blue colors making the mountain more peaceful. But for today, and the days to come he suspects, there is an energy that makes everyone giddy and excited. Even Shufu can be seen in a good mood in the days leading up to the wedding.

Now is the time for the tea ceremony, Lan Xichen is expected to serve tea to his brother and brother-in-law. He hopes that his hands aren’t shaking too much, he wants their happy day to be great! 

So by the time that they served tea to Shufu, Xiongzhang looked so happy along with Xian-gege in their red robes. Lan Xichen is very proud to admit that his hands only shook a little when he poured tea, but Xiongzhang gave him a red packet in thanks. They did the same with his brother-in-law’s family as Sect leader Yu was served first, Sect Leader Jiang and his wife next. Cheng-gege and Li-jie also served tea, since they are Xian-gege's younger siblings, they are also given red packets. When the tea of red dates and lotus seeds are served, he breathes out a sigh of relief that there wasn’t anything bad that had happened. 

Although, when Xian-gege saw the tea, he blushed a bright red. 

Afterward, they bowed in the ancestral shrine. They bowed three times: first for heaven and earth, the second is for their family and finally, the third bow is to each other. At that, they are now married. He claps with everyone in joy, but he sees that they only have eyes on each other as if they were the only people in the room.

He sits in the banquet with everyone celebrating the wedding, they eat and drink. His brothers have disappeared in the distraction during the celebrations. He is happy for them since they have been together even from the time that he was young until now it is as if their love grows with them.

Maybe he’s feeling a bit lonely, as he watches two mandarin ducks swim together. He just wants to find someone who can look at him the way that Brother looks at Xian-gege. 

“Hey,”

He turns around to see Nie Mingjue, who is already so much taller next to him. The other looks handsome in his forest green robes. Although, they seem to be a little more fashionable, accentuating the breadth of Nie Mingjue’s shoulders. Lan Xichen suspects that Sang-gege had something to do with the younger Nie’s clothing. 

He leans towards his friend as he swipes the cup of tea in his hands, pretending not to hear the playful protests. He hides his smile as he drinks the tea when A-Jue lets him rest his head on his shoulder. It’s very sweet, despite the fact that he knows Nie Mingjue prefers bitter teas as of late.

He’ll be fine, as long as Nie Mingjue is next to him.

((and as for the age differences, the Nie Bros and the Lan bros have the difference of ~9 years))

[satan-chillin]

WiP fics + fic ideas that got carried over to 2022 yet I'm not sure would see the light of the new year:

MDZS/CQL

Vampire NHS. JGY staying at the Unclean Realm for the duration of a terrible storm, got unknowingly fed on at nights.

SangCheng timetravel. JC is a time traveler. CQL verse for the most part. Pre-time travel JC was married to NHS.

Post-canon NHS accidentally waking up to an AU world where he was the one who died instead of MMJ. Kinda like worlds collide thingy.

Some second son dynamics between LQR and NHS, relating over suddenly having the responsibility of managing the sect and discarding one's interests once thrust to the role of a sect leader.

Modern AU Niecest. NHS is an immortal and found NMJ's reincarnation who goes by the name of Xu Mingjue, made friends w/him but they fell in love w/each other instead. Mingjue first after finding someone who truly understand him.

Niecest route of Third Sun. Not connected to the main series so basically like an AU of an AU fic. The fear of falling in love with your husband who also happened to be your younger brother in the original timeline lol.

Another fic in the Orbiting Starburst series (Nie bros role reversal) but in Meng Yao's POV where he got recruited by Sect Leader NHS who was posing as a healer from Qinghe.

Time traveling post canon NHS. Time traveling to NMJ's younger years & was surprised kid NMJ could see him and thought of him a ghost.

Different take on Empathy by WWX. NMJ keeps seeing this ghost/mirage of a guy (WWX in Empathy) & is basically told that he's already dead and WWX is just in his mindscape. Like that thing where they said your life flashes back on you for 7 mins before you die, and NMJ is experiencing that 7 mins.

Short continuation fic of that Witch NHS. Where the Witch of Qinghe got invited to a party in the Unclean Realm, NMJ's bday (probably). Different kinds of awkwardness for young adult NMJ + WRH who still coveted the witch's power/magic.

Time traveling NHS. Post Sunshot in LXC's POV. NHS secretly murdered JGY (then MY) right after war victory.

[jaimebluesq]

Three of my fics just got revealed in the Kidfic Exchange! Please feel free to read and enjoy!

We Know, We've Been There Before

(Pre-canon, Nie bros & Lan bros feels) Nie Mingjue's first proper diplomatic mission after becoming sect leader is to visit Cloud Recesses after the death of Madame Lan. The Nie brothers are there for the Lan brothers when they need them most.

The Debt

(Jin Rusong lives as NHS' son! NHS/QS, and family feels) Five years ago, Nie Huaisang helped Jin Guangyao and Qin Su get out of an unfortunate situation - as a result, he has a son, a wife, and another child on the way. One day, Jin Guangyao comes for a visit and reminds him of the favour, and says it's time that his debt to Nie Huaisang is paid.

Do It For Him

(Reverse Nies AU - Da-ge!NHS and Didi!NMJ) In the wake of his father's death, Nie Huaisang grieves and hides away, wanting nothing more than to run away from the responsibilities falling into his lap. But there is one person who won't let him, one person who is worth staying for, worth fighting the world for. And one person who believes in him more than anybody else in the world.

[thebiscuiteternal]

Have you got any ideas for a modern take on either of your Nies with a bigger age gap aus?

Hm, I actually haven't thought about that at all. Let me noodle with it a bit and I'll see what I can come up with!

For starters, I think a lot of it would depend on what kind of family business they've got. If I go with the butcher shop/restaurant I use frequently, then there shouldn't be much of a problem for either Normal Mingjue or Reverse Huaisang to inherit when they come of age, but if I go with the bodyguard/security services I also use frequently, it's gonna suck a lot more for Reverse Huaisang.

At the same time, since no one in modern times will be expecting either of them to run a store/restaurant/company at 14/15, unlike the sect, that means the only distraction from their surprise baby brother would be their schooling... oh and any vulture relatives looking to take their inheritance. 'Cause unless Papa Nie left behind some ironclad legal paperwork (which he probably would have done for either Mingjue... not so much for either Huaisang), there will be court dates to deal with.

So, yeah. That's all I've got so far, but it's already gonna be a headache for everybody. :)

[greenteakaros]

nhs fanfic favs (1)

ive read too much nhs these past few weeks-- might as well put it to use, then

1. Orbiting Starburst by PhantomWriter, (@satan-chillin) T, 8k words

"AU - Role/Age Reversal where Nie Mingjue was the Second Young Master Nie."

Holy hell. First and foremost! This series of 2 fics (personally the second one is my fav) is just nie bro feels. Nhs is so much more terrifying, nmj interacts with the main cast and just-- this fic shows a side of nie mingjue that really was robbed of us in canon. It's soft, it's sad, it's mastermind nhs at the wORKS

2. damnation of one's own making by Mayarene Rose (Paradise_of_Mary_Jane) T, 4k words

"In the space of a breath, between one life and the next, Nie Huaisang closes his eyes one moment as Jin Guangyao takes his last shuddering breaths.

In the next, he wakes up and opens his eyes to familiar rays of sunlight streaming through his window.

Nie Huaisang is stuck in a time loop starting the day before his brother dies and ending when he, inevitably, kills Jin Guangyao for it."

...what the hell can i even say about this? It's tragic, first of all. And it's this spiraling chain of bad to worst to more. Never thought 4k words would punch so hard, but here we are

3. Beware the Smiling Fool by madwriter223 M, 27k words

"Honorable Sect Leader Nie Cinai. I understand that you have recently lost your sons. That is quite worrying to hear - children are precious and should always be closely watched to ensure their safety. Thankfully, I happen to be in possession of them both. Come to Qishan at your earliest convenience so that we can discuss their continued well-being. Sect Leader Wen Ruohan, Chief Cultivator

-`-`-

It was a tragedy. Not only for the Qinghe Nie sect, but for the rest of the world as well."

okay but seriously this summary does not do this AU justice. half of this is half crack taken seriously, half angst, and everything else is just nie huaisang being a gremlin. An all time favorite-- also absolutely love the wen ning and nie huaisang friendship

4. Hey there, brother dear. by 1PB2PB3PB4 T, 26k words

""They say only the good die young," Huaisang says to Meng Yao once, with fear. His father's died too young, and it's increasingly looking like his brother might go the same way. His brother's good, he doesn't want him to die. "Only fools die young," Meng Yao corrects him, and hugs him. ******** They were brothers once, Nie Mingjue, Meng Yao, and Nie Huaisang. Before everything. And then they were still brothers and that's why it hurts."

tHIS. a lot of NHS's inner thoughts and contradictions, his struggles with the before and after of canon. It highlights the fact that Jin Guangyao was someone who was grown into and developed-- and despite everything, there was once a boy in Qinghe who went by the name Meng Yao, once.

--

part 2

[pumpkinpaix]

Hi I don’t know if anyone has asked you this already, but do you find it strange that we are never given either of the Nie brothers’ given names nor Jin ZiXuan’s, when it’s common practice (at least in the show) to address yourself by your given and courtesy names?

Hey there! :D No, no one has asked me this yet, ahaha.

To be honest, I don’t find it strange, but that’s mostly because I think MXTX assigned names as it was convenient/as it suited her. I do think in some cases, you can try to find textual reasons, like limited POV (@hunxi-guilai made a post about how that might explain why Jiang Cheng is disproportionately referred to by birth instead of courtesy name here).

In the case of Jin Zixuan, I think that makes a lot of sense. Since mdzs and cql are largely from Wei Wuxian’s POV, and he clearly already knows Jin Zixuan, there’s no need for him to reintroduce himself, which is usually where we get people mentioning both their names. I don’t have any textual reasoning for the Nie bros’ lack of birth names ahahaha.

I will, however, use this as a springboard to mention a few things I find generally interesting about the way naming conventions appear to vary between sects/interesting points about address in general. There’s like no deep meta here, just like. “I noticed this thing, and I think it’s interesting”. (hope that’s okay /o\)

One: The Jin sect is the only sect that uses generational character markers (Guang, Zi, Ru). Establishing that convention makes Jin Guangyao’s courtesy name a massive slap in the face I think. (a, for giving him the wrong generational marker, which implies that he’s never actually going to be recognized as a son/that jgs really just didn’t care to even get it right, and b, for reusing his birth character instead of bothering to give him something new–every other character who has a birth and courtesy name gets two entirely unique names, but not jgy.) It’s a cool way of implying certain things about his status, how his father regards him without stating it outright, how others might see him because of that etc.

Two: The Wen sect appears to almost exclusively use birth name–in fact, the only two characters from the Wen sect revealed to have courtesy names are Wen Ning (Wen Qionglin) and…. Wen Ruohan. Well, and Wen Zhuliu, but he was originally Zhao Zhuliu, so idk if that really counts, since his courtesy name predates his induction into the Wen sect. Wen Qing, Wen Chao, and Wen Xu are referred to by birth name only by both themselves and everyone around them for the entirety of the story, which seems rather strange, given that all of them are high-ranking members of the family (Wen Xu is the heir??). Sizhui is not given a courtesy name by his birth family, but by Lan Wangji.

(an aside, it’s been mentioned before by others, but historically, courtesy names were bestowed upon adulthood; however, in CQL, we see Wei Wuxian picking out Jin Ling’s courtesy name before he’s born. it’s possible this is a practice that differs from sect to sect, but again, very little to no textual support for that speculation ahahaha)

Wen Ning’s courtesy name is used only once by Wei Wuxian in a moment of extreme distress at the Guanyin temple. It reads, to me, like switching registers to indicate the high emotional levels of the situation rather than anything about respect/social relations, in the same way that like, lwj switching between “wei ying/wei wuxian” can indicate moments where emotions are running high. I hc that the intimacy/distance of birth/courtesy names are switched in the case of Wen Ning/Wen Qionglin (ie, only people who are intimate with him would be expected use Qionglin) but that has absolutely zero basis in any fact, cultural convention, or textual evidence. I just like it because it warms my heart. feel free to roast me for it, i can accept that criticism.

Three: Both the Lan sect and the Nie sect address by courtesy name, even within their own family. (Lan Qiren calls his nephews “Wangji” and “Xichen”. Sizhui and Jingyi call each other by courtesy name. Nie Mingjue calls his brother “Huaisang”.) Why? we don’t know! We could maybe try and meta about it in the case of the Lan sect, I think (they’re more formal in general etc.), but we have so little knowledge of the Nie sect that I think it’s functionally pointless to try and dig there. I feel like trying to come up with any plausibly supported reason is going to be a stretch.

Four: A’Cheng vs A’Xian. Jiang Yanli uses Jiang Cheng’s birth name to form his diminutive, but uses Wei Wuxian’s courtesy name to form his. I’ve seen people ask why she doesn’t call him A’Ying, which would be more consistent, but I hc that this is because “Wuxian” was given by her father, so her using “A’Xian” is meant to strengthen that familial tie. “Ying” is from before he was part of their family. “Wuxian” is something given to him by the Jiang family, so using it, I think, is a subtle way of emphasizing how much she really considers him to be her brother. (If you’re curious, in the flashback when he first arrives at Lotus Pier, the audio drama has her calling for him as “A’Ying”.)

Five: Yu-fu’ren. I mentioned this on an addition to another post a while ago, but I’ll copy the relevant passage from chapter 51 here again:

虞夫人就是江澄的母亲，虞紫鸢。当然，也是江枫眠的夫人，当初还曾是他的同修。照理说，应该叫她江夫人，可不知道为什么，所有人一直都是叫她虞夫人。有人猜是不是虞夫人性格强势，不喜冠夫姓。对此，夫妇二人也并无异议。

Yu-fu’ren was Jiang Cheng’s mother, Yu Ziyuan. Of course, she was also Jiang Fengmian’s wife [fu’ren], and once cultivated with him as well. By all reason, she should be called Jiang-fu’ren, but for some unknown reason, everyone had always called her Yu-fu’ren. Some guessed that perhaps because Yu-fu’ren had a forceful temperament, she disliked taking her husband’s name. Neither husband nor wife raised any objections to this.

I think this is actually a pretty interesting microcosm of the themes of mdzs. We don’t actually know why Yu Ziyuan is called Yu-fu’ren; we’re given the equivalent of a rundown on local gossip and that’s it. I feel like it embodies a little bit of the “what people say about you becomes the truth and then influences your fate” theme that runs through mdzs. Did Yu Ziyuan WANT to be called Yu-fu’ren? Did she request it? Is her husband actually fine with it? The audience doesn’t get any of their internal landscape and is instead given a leading interpretation of the situation. How is our opinion of her then influenced?

To be clear, I don’t necessarily think that was necessarily the intention of this passage (maybe it was! or maybe mxtx just wanted to call her yu-fu’ren and realized she had to come up with some justification for it. i really couldn’t tell you); I just think that regardless of intention, its existence in relation to the larger themes of the novel can present a cool juxtaposition, if you dig a little bit.

Six: Song Lan, a respected cultivator, is more often referred to by his birth name, including people who are not intimate with him (normally, this would be rude), while Xiao Xingchen (who is intimate with him) calls him by courtesy name. Why?? We also don’t know. Does this lend support to my earlier headcanon about Wen Ning/Qionglin having a reversed intimacy/distance implication?? not… not really, but I like to think it at least kind of shows a precedent….. orz.

Seven: I find Xue Yang’s courtesy name, Xue Chengmei (成美), really fun ahaha. It comes from the phrase, 君子成人之美, an idiom that essentially means, “a gentleman always helps others attain their wishes”. Jin Guangyao gave it to him (not sure if this is canonical or extracanonical–i heard about it in an audio drama extra, much like how i get all my information orz) which I think is greatly amusing for obvious reasons.

Eight: Lan Wangji actually changes Sizhui’s birth name, even though you wouldn’t be able to tell just from hearing it. His original birth name is 苑, an imperial garden, but Lan Wangji changes it to 愿, as in wish (愿望) and to be willing (愿意), among other very beautiful sentiments. partially im sure to protect his identity, but also because. you know.

Basically all this is just to say, I think the naming/address conventions in mdzs are pretty weakly conceived, but you can find interesting things in them if you go looking! and we all know i love to go looking /o\

[ibijau]

Sunday 11th: Free spot - Age/role reversal, where Nie Huaisang is the oldest with a bratty little brother, while Lan Xichen is the sweet and happy Second Jade of Gusu Lan

This will be a two parter at minimum and the role reversal won’t come up until part two oops

Also on AO3

Inside Lan Qiren's office, Nie Huaisang bowed deeply before the renowned teacher. 

"I leave my brother in your capable hands," he said, before turning to Lan Wangji and bowing again. "Please, make sure he doesn't create troubles. I trust your judgement in these matters, so punish him if need be." 

Next to him Nie Mingjue scoffed, as only a boy unused to discipline could. Nie Huaisang, who was the entire reason his brother often came off as a stubborn brat, sighed. The Lans would have a lot of work with that one.

Lan Xichen, who had been standing behind his brother, stepped aside to grab Nie Mingjue's arm, smiling brightly. 

"I'll make sure he behaves," he promised. "If he does anything bad, I'll tell Brother and Uncle." 

"Xichen-ge!" Nie Mingjue cried out, betrayed. "I thought we were friends!" 

"We are, but Nie zongzhu trusts us. Don't you, Nie zongzhu?" 

"I trust you most of all," Nie Huaisang said, amused as always by this too earnest second master of Gusu Lan. He almost laughed when Lan Xichen's face turned bright pink at his comment. It was always fun to compliment those Lans. "Lan Er-gongzi, please take good care of my little brother. I know you will be a good influence on him." 

Lan Xichen preened, until Nie Mingjue elbowed him in the ribs for this betrayal. This time, Nie Huaisang really couldn't help laughing. He exchanged a glance with Lan Wangji who also looked amused, in his own manner, while Lan Qiren just sighed and dismissed the two boys so grown-ups could speak in peace. Well, two grown-ups and Lan Wangji, who wasn't quite nineteen yet, but often behaved as if he were already in his seventies or more. 

"How are things in Qinghe?" Lan Qiren asked, inviting his guest to sit while Lan Wangji served tea for both of them. 

"Better these days," Nie Huaisang confessed. "We haven't had another plot against us since that last time. I think everyone is coming to term with me being in charge until Mingjue comes of age… And five more years isn't so much to wait." 

Lan Qiren nodded, knowing as well as Nie Huaisang what that sort of waiting felt like. Though of course, the circumstances were different. 

Lan Qiren's place within Gusu Lan could never have been contested, while Nie Huaisang was only the talentless son of a dancer turned concubine. On the other hand, Nie Huaisang would be truly free in five years, when his father's true heir could be crowned sect leader, while the best Lan Qiren could hope for was that in eighteen months Lan Wangji would become more involved in sect affairs, but Lan Qiren would remain regent unless his brother decided otherwise. 

Although Nie Huaisang got along well with Lan Qiren who was little more than a decade his senior, he was close friend with Lan Wangji who was only a few years younger. And so, for the sake of his younger friend's wellbeing, he hoped Qingheng-Jun would continue leaving the burden of power on Lan Qiren's shoulders. Lan Wangji deserved to have a free youth, or at least as free as his temper allowed. 

"How long is Nie zongzhu staying?" Lan Wangji asked, sounding hopeful. Or at least, Nie Huaisang gathered he was hopeful, he could be so hard to read. 

"I really only came to drop Mingjue," Nie Huaisang sighed. "Things are more stable, but I'd be a fool to stay away too long. But you must come visit me, Wangji. We haven't chatted in so long, you really must. I'm even willing to go on a Night Hunt if need be." 

A near smile appeared on Lan Wangji’s face at that offer, both of them knowing what it cost Nie Huaisang to say such a thing, but also that he really would if it was the only way to see his friend. 

-

It had not been the worst Night Hunt Nie Huaisang had ever been on, mostly because he'd let Lan Wangji do all the work. In exchange, he was the one paying all the expanses, and so had dragged Lan Wangji into a nicer inn than his friend would have picked. Someone had to spoil Lan Wangji, and Nie Huaisang was happy to do it. He hadn't managed yet to convince his friend to have a little meat, but the night was still young, and it was just the two of them since they'd requested to have their dinner served in their room. In private, Lan Wangji occasionally relaxed a little more. 

"So, I hear Mingjue’s making friends?" Nie Huaisang said, pouring himself some wine. "Those Yunmeng boys?"

"Jiang gongzi," Lan Wangji confirmed. "They have frequent arguments. They always make up." 

"It's good he's met someone with a temper to match his own," Nie Huaisang laughed. "Xichen lets him get away with too much. He writes to me, you know?" 

"Nie gongzi?" 

Nie Huaisang shook his head. "Mingjue wouldn't write to me if his life depended on it, the brat. No, I meant Xichen. That boy is adorable, he took it so seriously when I asked him to take care of Mingjue, and now he gives me updates. Wangji, you have the best brother, I want to trade."

"Hm. No." 

"How selfish!" Nie Huaisang whined. "Just you wait, in five years I'm free! I'll seduce Xichen, get him to the Unclean Realm with me… Then he can make sure Mingjue behaves, while I'll be painting all day." 

Lan Wangji rolled his eyes, before taking a sip of tea. 

"Oh don't worry, you wouldn't be left alone," Nie Huaisang said with a wide grin. "Maybe Wei Wuxian could be convinced to stay in the Cloud Recesses?" 

Instantly, Lan Wangji spit his tea on the table, glaring at Nie Huaisang who howled with laughter. 

"Huaisang!" 

"Blame your brother! He's the one who told me about it. I thought he was joking, but… Seriously, Wei Wuxian? Ah, Wangji, you'll always surprise me." 

Lan Wangji's glare intensified, as if the very idea of him liking anything about a brat like Wei Wuxian were an insult to his character. It would have been more credible if Nie Huaisang hadn't known his tell, and noticed his red ears.

"He's smart, and talented," Nie Huaisang noted, a little more seriously. "A brat, sure, but he'll calm down with age. I can't say he's my type physically, but you're entitled to your bad tastes." 

"A sect leader can't marry a man," Lan Wangji sternly noted. 

Nie Huaisang shot him a surprised look, shocked that Lan Wangji would even be thinking of something so serious. He would have to write to Lan Xichen about this. If Lan Wangji's crush was this deep already, they needed to help along. Propriety didn't matter much in the long run, Nie Huaisang had learned early. 

And besides, there was always Lan Xichen to give heirs to the Lan sect. 

-

Discussion conferences were never much fun. Those held in Nightless City, even less so. Nie Huaisang hated most other sect leaders, though he felt justified in that by the fact they didn’t like him much either, with the exception of Lan Qiren, who was an old family friend, and Jiang Fengmian, who was too weak willed to hate anyone. Everyone else treated Nie Huaisang like an idiot for his continued insistence that he would abdicate in favour of his brother as soon as Nie Mingjue was ready for it, never understanding that aside from his lack of interest for the job of sect leader, he would merely be obeying his father’s own wishes.

Nie Mingjue was their father’s true heir, Nie Huaisang’s only role was keeping the throne warm for him.

Of course nobody except Lan Qiren would understand that. A bunch of greedy, selfish fools the whole lot of them, who would have sold their own fathers and sons to grab a little more power. The worst, by far, were Jin Guangshan (who’d always taken the old Nie sect leader for an idiot, since he would never have recognised a bastard, let alone married the whore who bore it) and Wen Ruohan (who rumour said had murdered his own father indeed, and who had certainly killed Nie Huaisang’s, something for which he’d pay someday). If either of those two dropped dead before him, Nie Huaisang would only have laughed and left them to rot in the sun.

Which wasn’t to say that either of them knew that.

Nie Huaisang hadn’t survived years of internal conflict in his sect without learning a few things, and so he made sure to be especially polite to those two very powerful men. It annoyed Nie Mingjue to no end, but he wasn’t sect leader yet and couldn’t do anything about it.

And so, Nie Huaisang had to pleasantly talk with those two awful men while the juniors of all sects took part in an archery contest. It wasn’t Nie Mingjue’s greatest strength, but he did well for himself, so Nie Huaisang was determined to congratulate and praise him for his hard work. Meanwhile, Wen Chao had failed horribly and been eliminated very early on, which delighted Nie Huaisang more than words could have said, even if he forced himself to babble that surely it couldn’t have been anything but bad luck. Not that anyone really cared, anyway. The stars of the day were the Twin Jades of Gusu Lan and Wei Wuxian, who had done so well and would have been in the top three together, if not for some incident forcing Lan Wangji to give up.

When the contest was over, Nie Huaisang rushed to go meet his brother and his friends, eager to congratulate the boys… and to escape the grown-ups.

It amused him to find Nie Mingjue having an argument with Jiang Cheng, with Wei Wuxian laughing to the side and Lan Xichen watching them indulgently, like a benevolent older brother to those three terrors. And out of the four of them, Lan Xichen was the first to spot Nie Huaisang approaching.

“Nie zongzhu, were you looking for your brother?” he asked with a bow that the Yunmeng boys imitated. “Did you see how well he did in the contest?”

“Very well indeed,” Nie Huaisang agreed. “Though I found myself mostly watching you. I knew Lan Er-gongzi was a skilled archer, but this was amazing. I wouldn’t be surprised if the heavens had opened to welcome you as a martial god, you were simply brilliant.”

As always, Lan Xichen blushed at the heavy praise, which was the very reason Nie Huaisang did it. That boy always reacted so strongly to any little compliment, it was simply a joy to see.

Nie Mingjue rolled his eyes, and slapped his brother’s shoulder.

“You’re such an embarrassment, Da-Ge,” he muttered. “Can’t you behave normally sometimes?”

“Did I say something wrong? Lan Er-gongzi, did you feel insulted perhaps?”

“Not in the least,” Lan Xichen replied, his cheeks turning a brighter shade of pink. “But perhaps Nie zongzhu is… a little too generous in praising me. I only got the first place because Brother had to quit. Otherwise, he would have won for sure.”

“Second place wouldn’t be bad either,” Nie Huaisang insisted. “And having a calm character in the face of adversity is a quality in and of itself, one that I envy. Lan Er-gongzi just needs to accept that he is a very skilled young man. He wouldn’t have been picked as the first most eligible bachelor of this generation otherwise!”

This was, without a doubt, the brightest shade of red that Nie Huaisang had ever seen on poor Lan Xichen who clearly felt greatly embarrassed by that list that had started circulating some months earlier. It was a fairly accurate list though, and one Nie Huaisang could have written… except he would have placed his brother higher (seventh only was an insult) and removed himself from it (he was eighth only because of his current position as sect leader, and did not intend to ever marry if he could avoid it).

"You're such a creepy old man," Nie Mingjue grumbled, elbowing him in the ribs with more force than was really necessary. 

"Nie zongzhu isn't old, he's only twenty two, right?" Lan Xichen protested, before turning to the Yunmeng boys who had been watching them with great amusement. "That's not so much older than the rest of us, right?”

“It’s barely older than our sister,” Jiang Cheng conceded, always trying so hard to be polite even when it did not come to him easily. Nie Huaisang really hoped some of that would rub on Nie Mingjue over time.

“So it’s settled, Nie zongzhu is not old at all,” Lan Xichen decided. “Nie zongzhu should really spend more time with us, instead of other sect leaders.”

While Nie Huaisang couldn’t help laughing at that very tempting offer, Nie Mingjue glared at his friend. For some reason, Lan Xichen turned bright red once more and had to look away. Ah, he really was too cute, none of the other Lans were ever so sweet.

“I’d do so gladly, if I truly had a choice, but duty is a cruel mistress,” Nie Huaisang theatrically sighed. “In fact, I’ll abandon you again now. I only wanted to get a chance to congratulate all of you for your amazing performance. You’ve all done very well, and I feel lucky to have seen such talented young men perform like this. Now though, I must return to sit with boring old men and pretend there’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”

The four boys had the kindness of pretending they were disappointed to see him leave. At least, three of them had to be pretending. Lan Xichen was sweet enough that he might have been sincere in saying he wished Nie Huaisang could have stayed, though Nie Huaisang had no doubt they’d all have much better fun without him.

Ah, to be young and free.

Nie Huaisang wondered what that was like.

-

The news of the burning of the Cloud Recesses reached the Unclean Realm a few days after it happened, carrying with it grim rumours. Qingheng-Jun was either wounded or dead, his eldest son captured or dead as well, and as for the youngest, no one seemed to really know. Maybe he too was dead, leaving only poor Lan Qiren to pick up the pieces, as he had already done more than once now. If the political climate had not been so tense and the Wens so clearly looking for excuses to attack everyone, Nie Huaisang would have flown straight to the Cloud Recesses to check what had really happened and offer his support.

Just days after they heard about the Lans, a messenger came from Qishan Wen, ordering that twenty young people of Qinghe Nie should be sent to be taught properly in cultivation matters, among which one at least needed to be from the main clan itself.

Nie Huaisang, who was no fool, understood what that truly meant. The Wens wanted to have his brother in his power.

His first instinct, of course, was to refuse. He hadn’t spent six years protecting Nie Mingjue from coups and attacks within their sects just to hand him over to the people who had murdered their father, the ones who Nie Huaisang suspected to have supported at least one or two of those coups. And yet, after thinking on it for a few hours, Nie Huaisang realised that this choice, like many others, wasn’t quite in his hands. So he summoned his brother to the throne room, hoping that treating this like official sect business would make Nie Mingjue a little more willing to bend to his authority.

It did not quite work.

In fact, it did not work at all.

"I'm not letting you send me there as a hostage!" Nie Mingjue roared when Nie Huaisang announced his decision.

"I'm your sect leader and your elder brother,” Nie Huaisang pointed out, trying not to wince. This was going exactly as bad as he had feared. “If I give you an order, you have to obey." 

"Some sect leader you are," Nie Mingjue snapped. "Always bending before everyone, trying to stay on the good side of the man who murdered our father. If I were sect leader…" 

"Well you're not, not yet. And you'll never be unless I keep you alive!" Nie Huaisang shouted, before taking a deep breath to calm himself. "Mingjue, just because nobody has tried to kill me recently doesn't mean they've given up on it. If I resist Wen Ruohan and start a war, they'll turn on me, on us! And even if they don't, who would side with us against the Wens? Jin Guangshan covets our territories, the Lans are weakened, and Jiang Fengmian doesn't have the numbers to be of any use. Qinghe Nie is alone. We're alone, Mingjue. Please understand that. Please let me protect you."

Nie Mingjue glared at him and stepped closer. He’d grown a lot recently, and was slightly taller than Nie Huaisang. He was likely to keep growing, too, and would probably be as imposing a man as their father… if he stayed alive long enough for it.

Nie Huaisang begged any god that might be listening to keep his brother alive.

"Protect me?” Nie Mingjue spat, looking down at his older brother. “Are you sure you're not just sending me there to get killed by the Wens, so you don't have to pretend anymore that you'll abdicate in my favour? After all you've gotten so good at leading the sect, and I'm just a brat, who'd blame you for wanting me dead?"

Nie Huaisang slapped him. 

It wasn't a strong blow, and with their difference in cultivation and power, it couldn't have hurt much. In fact, Nie Huaisang’s hand probably stung more than his brother’s face. Still Nie Mingjue found himself stunned into silence and pressed a hand to his cheek. 

No matter how bratty, headstrong, or disrespectful he'd been before, Nie Huaisang had never once hit him until that day. At the same time, Nie Mingjue had always taken his brother's defence whenever someone accused Nie Huaisang of plotting for power, knowing full well how much it distressed his brother that anyone would think him capable of harming Nie Mingjue. 

"I hate you," Nie Mingjue hissed. 

"Hate me if you like, you're still going to Qishan," Nie Huaisang replied. 

"If you were a real sect leader, a real cultivator…" 

"Well I'm neither!" Nie Huaisang exploded. "I don't have the strength to start a war, and I even less have the power to fight in one! In four years, when you sit on that damn throne, you can declare all the wars you like, lead this sect however it pleases you! But until then it's me who decides how we're playing this game, and I say we are not going to give Qishan Wen an excuse to slaughter all of us!"

"I really hate you," Nie Mingjue retorted, still rubbing his cheek. "I wish your mother had never come to Qinghe." 

"I wish the same. I'd rather have been the obscure son of a whore than to lead this stupid sect for you. Now go and pack your things! I need to decide who else I'm sending." 

Nie Mingjue stormed away, cursing loudly and stomping his feet. Nie Huaisang waited until his brother was far enough, and collapsed on the throne, curling up on himself to cry.

He could have taken the whole world accusing him of scheming and being a bad brother. Even if Lan Wangji or those few Nie elders faithful to him had suddenly turned on him, he could have borne with it. But to hear that Nie Mingjue too doubted him after all was more than he could take.

It took him a long time to calm down, but he did eventually. And then, as he was quite used to doing, he pushed aside his feelings and set out to decide what would be the best way to protect his brother. Nie Huaisang stayed up all night making a list of nineteen Nie disciples who could be trusted to keep Nie Mingjue safe not simply from whatever the Wens had in store for them, but also from his own temper.

His brother would survive this.

Nie Huaisang refused to consider any other possibilities.

-

When Nie Mingjue and the other disciples returned, exhausted and on foot, Nie Huaisang ran to his brother and hugged him in the middle of the courtyard for an embarrassingly long time. It alarmed him when Nie Mingjue didn’t push him away or complain, as he’d started doing over any displays of affection these last couple of years. Instead, Nie Mingjue pulled his brother closer to him, as if needing the closeness as well. Later Nie Huaisang would worry about what might have caused this big boy of nearly seventeen to so desperately need a hug, but right then he just took this rare gift and enjoyed it while it lasted.

When at last Nie Mingjue reluctantly let him go, Nie Huaisang looked around at the other disciples. He frowned when he counted two missing, when he saw wounds on several of them. These boys were his, almost as much as Nie Mingjue, and it made his blood boil that anyone had harmed them. He quickly gave orders for the healers to check on them and food to be served for them, before dragging his brother to the privacy of his quarters to hear what had happened.

It worried him again when he sat on his sofa, and Nie Mingjue not only sat near him but curled up against his side, the way he used to do as a little boy.

Then his brother explained everything that had happened, the punishments, the threats, the slaughter in that cave, the monster, Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian being lost to the world perhaps, the long run home, and… Nie Huaisang pulled his brother as close as he could. They both knew better than most how carelessly cruel Qishan Wen could be, but this was a new low.

“I shouldn’t have sent you,” Nie Huaisang whispered against his brother’s hair. “You were right, I shouldn’t have.”

“They’d have attacked us, like you said,” Nie Mingjue replied. “Wangji-ge said that they were well prepared when they came to the Cloud Recesses and would have killed all of them if Lan Qiren hadn't given in about burning the library.”

“We’re not Gusu Lan,” Nie Huaisang hissed. “We know how to fight back. I shouldn’t have risked you, I’m so sorry.”

Nie Mingjue only hummed in answer. After a moment he pulled back from his brother, looking horrifyingly serious.

“Da-Ge, do you think we’ll really have a war now?”

“If they attack us, we’ll defend ourselves,” Nie Huaisang replied. “If they attack our friends, we’ll come to help them. If they attack the Jins… I’ll send Wen Ruohan a basket of flowers in thanks, and then we’ll still prepare for war. I don’t think it can be avoided now.”

Nie Mingjue nodded. “I’ll help. I’ll fight, I’ll lead men, I’ll do anything you tell me. Anything except stay away from the fight,” he quickly added before Nie Huaisang could say a thing. “I’m not too young for it, and with their numbers you know we can’t spare anyone. If Wen Chao is standing at his father’s side, why shouldn't I stand at yours?"

The idea of Nie Mingjue in battle, of him facing not just monsters but actual people capable of far more harm than any supernatural creature, left Nie Huaisang breathless with horror. His little brother shouldn't have had to deal with that, not yet, not ever. Nie Huaisang’s soul screamed in protest. 

Most of his soul, anyway. 

The part of him that had been fighting daily to maintain power over Qinghe Nie so it wouldn't be stolen from Nie Mingjue saw this upcoming war as an opportunity. If they did well enough for themselves, if Nie Mingjue proved that he had the potential to make a great leader, the way Nie Huaisang knew he would be when his time came… It could buy them peace within their sect, turn a few more elders and ambitious cousins to their side. If they could be made to see Nie Mingjue the way Nie Huaisang saw him… 

It was a risk to take, but it'd be worth it if it worked. 

And between Nie Huaisang's cunning and Nie Mingjue’s everything, how could it not work? 

As long as they were together, Nie Huaisang felt capable of anything. 

-

Roughly a month into what they had dubbed the Sunshot Campaign, Nie Mingjue barged into his brother's tent, dragging behind him a bewildered young man by the name of Meng Yao. A new recruit into their sect, arrived in Qinghe Nie shortly before Nie Mingjue had escaped from the indoctrination camp. A young man who showed great promise, Nie Huaisang had thought, putting him among the troupes led by his brother. 

Nothing to do with the fact that Nie Huaisang had taken notice of Meng Yao for their similar backgrounds and, knowing how some of their disciples could be, decided to leave that young man under the protection of Nie Mingjue who did not tolerate anyone to be badmouthed for their origins. 

Nie Huaisang had expected that sooner or later his brother would talk to him about Meng Yao, hopefully in good. 

What he hadn't expected was Nie Mingjue demanding that Meng Yao be made his second in command right this instant. 

"Did Meng gongzi agree to this?" Nie Huaisang asked, deeply amused by the shock on the young man's face. 

"Why would he refuse?" Nie Mingjue retorted, so sincerely puzzled that it made his brother laugh. 

They had all seen some ugly things this past month, but Nie Huaisang was grateful that his brother hadn't been too changed by it yet.

"Please just ask that man what he wants," Nie Huaisang chuckled. 

Nie Mingjue rolled his eyes, as if his brother were acting obtuse on purpose, but he did ask Meng Yao whether he wanted the job or not. 

Meng Yao hesitated, which marked him as someone clever enough to realise the amount of responsibility he'd get if he said yes. But he did say yes, which spoke of a certain hunger for better circumstances that Nie Huaisang would have to keep an eye on. Ambition had never been a trait he liked in others, lacking it so much himself. 

"Well if everyone wants this, I can only agree," Nie Huaisang announced. "Welcome to this mess, Meng Yao."

"Thank you for this honour, Nie zongzhu," Meng Yao replied with a deep, elegant bow. "I will try to be worthy of it." 

-

The weeks that followed were both some of the hardest and the best that Nie Huaisang had ever lived through. 

He had not been confronted with such levels of fear and stress since the first year after his father's passing. At the same time, he wasn't alone to face it all this time. His brother was now old enough to fight some battles of his own, literally and metaphorically, which took a huge weight of Nie Huaisang’s shoulders. And Meng Yao, although dropped into this unprepared, had soon proven to be a great asset as well as a great friend. 

It had been so long since Nie Huaisang had made a friend. Not since his father's descent into madness, in fact. All those years he had only had Lan Wangji and Lan Qiren to turn to, and he liked both of them immensely, of course, but there was so much they simply couldn't understand. 

Meng Yao did.

He knew what it felt like to be the son of a mother only, no matter how glorious the father. He knew about disdain and fighting for respect, about needing to be better than anyone just to perhaps be treated the same. Meng Yao was the only person to understand what Nie Huaisang’s life was like, and he was ever so glad that his brother had decided to take a fancy to the young man. 

He hoped Meng Yao would stay with them for good, a perfect addition to their little family. 

He told Lan Wangji as much, a few weeks after Meng Yao's rise in ranks, too delighted by the way things were going to keep the joy to himself. 

They were technically meeting in the Nie camp to plan a joint attack by Lan and Nie forces, but Nie Huaisang refused to make any decisions until Nie Mingjue joined them and gave his opinion. He was the one who knew the field's situation best after all, and he generally understood military manoeuvres better than Nie Huaisang. So as they waited for him to return from a quick reconnaissance mission, Nie Huaisang did what he did best and chatted endlessly. 

Because Lan Wangji was always so quiet, it took Nie Huaisang a criminally long time to realise his friend seemed a little out of it that day. 

"How is it treating you, being sect leader?" Nie Huaisang asked. "To rise to power in such circumstances, that can't be… I can't imagine."

"It was similar for Huaisang," Lan Wangji soberly replied. "I have people to rely on." 

"Oh, right, I heard Xichen made it home safely! It must have been such a relief! I know I was worried for him. But him and the books were safe in the end, right? You must have been so relieved!" 

Lan Wangji nodded, quite earnestly, and yet something still didn't look right. It had to mean the reason for his melancholy was the last possible option. And that, sadly, also meant it was not something Nie Huaisang thought he could help with. Still, even just by lending a friendly ear… 

"So, I hear you were there when they found Wei Wuxian again?" 

Lan Wangji flinched at that name, visibly so. 

It had been barely two weeks since Wei Wuxian was found, but already odd rumours had reached Nie Huaisang, rumours that didn't quite fit the image he had of that brilliant but silly boy. The state in which Wen Chao's men were said to have been found was… 

"It must have been rough, hiding three months like that, or being a prisoner of the Wens," Nie Huaisang hesitantly said. "And after what happened in Lotus Piers… But I'm sure he'll be back to normal with a little time, and then you can go back to inefficiently flirting with him." 

"No." 

"Why not? Come on Wangji, I'll even help you!" Nie Huaisang offered, delighted by the idea. "I know that type, they flirt with everyone, but it takes them by surprise when someone flirts back. Just smile at him a little and I swear…" 

"No," Lan Wangji repeated, more insistently. "It is me or Xichen. I will not be my father. I will not take my brother's choice from him." 

Nie Huaisang blinked a few times, trying to understand what Lan Xichen had to do with anything. 

"Wait, Xichen likes someone ?" he gasped. "Oh. Who is it? Do I know her? Is she pretty? Had he started courting her?" 

"Him. Not yet. The circumstances aren't right." 

"Oh." 

Nie Huaisang pinched his lips, a little disturbed by the idea. He had nothing against men who preferred other men, having that taste himself. And even if he had liked only women, since he suspected that Nie Mingjue had a thing for pretty boys as much as girls, he could never have found that sort of preference disgusting. 

Still, it felt odd to him that Lan Xichen might have a crush on anyone. Perhaps that was because Lan Xichen had never once mentioned it to him. Not that they were close by any means, but they had written to each other so often that year Nie Mingjue was in Gusu, Nie Huaisang thought that Lan Xichen had come to see him as another brother figure, one in whom he might have confided more easily than in Lan Wangji. 

Clearly, he had thought wrong. 

"So what if you both like men?" Nie Huaisang said, choosing to ignore his discomfort when Lan Wangji’s was greater. "There's always the option of getting a concubine. My grandfather certainly did, and back then cut-sleeve weddings weren't half as accepted as they are now." 

"Concubines are frowned upon." 

"You Lans need to stop ruining your own lives. Get that Wei boy, Wangji, and let Xichen get… Who is it, anyway? Someone I know?" 

Lan Wangji threw him an unimpressed look, the one he had whenever he thought Nie Huaisang was acting obtuse on purpose. For once, it wasn't the case. Still, it meant that it had to be very obvious. Nie Mingjue, perhaps? But that seemed unlikely, Lan Xichen used to joke in his letters that he wasn't sure if Nie Mingjue and Jiang Cheng were arguing or flirting. That also took Jiang Cheng out of the picture. Wei Wuxian then? But no, Lan Xichen was so supportive of his brother's affections, it was impossible. 

Nie Huaisang was stumped. Aside from these three, he couldn't imagine who Lan Xichen would have been friendly enough with to fall for them. 

He was about to ask for clues when his brother stomped into the tent, followed closely by Lan Xichen and Meng Yao who both looked rather worried. 

"How nice of you to join us at last," Nie Huaisang noted lightly, as if this were a perfectly fine and polite way to come in. "Please Mingjue, sit down so we can commence." 

He gestured at a sitting cushion next to him, only for his brother to glare at him. 

"You need to write a recommendation letter for Meng Yao," Nie Mingjue ordered. "He wants to join Lanling Jin, but they've refused him before. They won't dare if he comes recommended!" 

Nie Huaisang felt his blood freeze. He tilted his head, trying to catch Meng Yao's eyes, but the young man refused to look at him. An admission of guilt in itself. 

"Meng Yao, I don't think that's a good idea," Nie Huaisang sighed. "Aren't you happy with us? Aren't we treating you well? You know how much we value you, you're the only person I trust to look after my brother. If you leave…" 

"He's Jin zongzhu's son," Nie Mingjue interrupted, as if that were news to Nie Huaisang. "He has a right to be in Lanling Jin! If they were stupid enough to turn him down before, I'd like to see them do that again, when he has the support of another great sect!" 

Nie Huaisang smiled without joy, full of affection and pity for his little brother. It must have been wonderful to be such a righteous and honest person that you couldn't understand that others weren't.

But Nie Huaisang had long ago learned how other people were, and so he could guess just how awful of an idea this was. First of all, Jin Guangshan was a man who loathed all his bastards, and hated being told what to do. Secondly, if Nie Huaisang were to give Meng Yao a recommendation, it would just be the son of a lowly concubine supporting the son of a prostitute. Between whores' sons, of course they would help one another, people might say, and then dismiss all of Meng Yao's skills because they had been praised by the wrong person. 

It would be such a disservice to Meng Yao. It would be sending him to people who wouldn't appreciate him the way Nie Huaisang did. 

It would be losing a friend, when he had so few. 

"Jin Guangshan doesn't like me much," Nie Huaisang said at last. "I'm not really sure…" 

"Please, Nie zongzhu," Lan Xichen pleaded, stepping forward. "It is really important to Meng gongzi. Maybe if Wangji too writes him a letter? After all, we owe him as well." 

"How so?" Nie Huaisang asked. He shot Lan Wangji a surprised look, but it was Lan Xichen who spoke again. 

"When Wangji sent me away with our books, I met Meng Yao who rescued me and protected me," Lan Xichen explained, smiling at Meng Yao who was looking more and more embarrassed. "Without his help and advice, I would surely have been caught by the Wens, and who knows what might have become of me." 

"He never said." 

Meng Yao risked a glance at his sect leader, and smiled weakly. 

"At that time, I wasn't sure who could be trusted with such sensitive information," he confessed. "And besides I wanted to be accepted for my own merit. I wanted a chance to truly prove myself, relying only on my skills and hard work." 

"And you did!" Nie Mingjue exclaimed. "So Da-Ge will write you a letter to present to Jin Guangshan. We'll be sorry to lose you, but family is what matters." 

Nie Huaisang pinched his lips. Nothing good could come of Meng Yao leaving them, he was one of theirs now, he belonged with them as surely as if they shared blood. 

But if Nie Mingjue truly wanted this, if he was certain of his decision… it was high time that he started becoming more involved in their sect's life, and this was part of it. Besides, what was the worst that could come from it? 

"I'll write you that letter, Meng Yao," Nie Huaisang promised. "I hope you find in Lanling what you seek. And if you do not… You are always welcome in the Unclean Realm. Tomorrow, in a year, in ten… You are our friend, Meng Yao, and leaving today doesn't mean you can't return later." 

And he would return, Nie Huaisang was certain of that. Still, the pain of losing this skilled collaborator, this valued friend, was compensated somewhat by the explosive joy of these three boys. Meng Yao bowed deeply in thanks, while Nie Mingjue broke the stoic persona he was trying to put on lately to hug his brother. As for Lan Xichen he smiled more brightly than Nie Huaisang had ever seen him before, saying again and again how grateful he was that Nie Huaisang was helping him repay his debt. In a very un-Lan manner, he even knelt next to Nie Huaisang and gave him a brief hug.

When Lan Xichen jumped back to his feet to return at Meng Yao's side, Nie Huaisang’s eyes met Lan Wangji, his friend once again giving him That Look. 

Nie Huaisang glanced over at Lan Xichen, so excited for his friend's good fortune, while a very overwhelmed Meng Yao could only stare at him with open gratefulness and affection. 

Oh. 

Well, that settled the issue, Nie Huaisang thought despondently. 

They would never have kept Meng Yao anyway.