#this is supposed to be training but shang qinghua is fighting for his life

[pastelshroomsbasement]

yue qingyuan after soloing liu qingge and li qingmai: haha great job you two! lets take a break

liu qingge and li qingmai looking like a hurricane passed them: NO PLS WE CAN STILL KEEP GOING

qi qingqi is the one who duels with the other peak lords but when its time to fight shang qinghua, qu bing will beg to fight him instead (TO AVENGE THE WOMEN)

[vodkassassin]

:D if possible, can we have Shang Qinghua being amazing support in a fight, Mu Qingfang finding this out, and telling no one so he always has best support pick whenever he needs it. (Shang Qinghua not minding because yes, please let him team up with the sane and actually respectful healer more.)

I accidentally made it kinda gay sorry

“Mu-shidi?” Shang Qinghua knocks nervously on the door to the doctor’s offices, peeking into the room in search of the man. “Mu-shidi, are you here?”

“Yes!” Footsteps sound from the adjacent room and Shang Qinghua’s new martial brother appears. He’s carrying a stack of files, and ducks his head in as much of a bow of greeting as he can. “Thank you for coming, shixiong. I know my message got to you rather late in the day, so I apologize for any work of yours that I interrupted.”

Shang Qinghua blinks in surprise, and steps forward to meet Mu Qingfang as the stack of papers sways precariously. “No need to apologize, you didn’t interrupt anything that can’t be finished later. Ah… that’s a lot of files, shidi. Let me help you.”

“Many thanks.” Mu Qingfang stands still and allows him to slide the top half of the files away from his burden, then directs him toward the desk set up toward the side of the room.

They set the papers down, and Mu Qingfang takes a seat whilst Shang Qinghua situates himself on the cushion across from him, the desk between the two of them. He presses the flats of his hands together and lies them in his lap, looking curiously across the table at his shidi.

They’ve only been martial brothers for a few months now. Shang Qinghua had met Mu Qingfang only a few times before they both ascended into the positions of their respective peak lords confirmed successors. Back then, he’d been Shang Fei, and his shidi had been Mu Ling, and they only really knew each other peripherally.

More recently, they’d been sent on a handful of joint missions together. The current peak lords have lately been setting up trials of a sort, between all of their head disciples, to see how they work together. Shang Qingfang has been on several already with Mu Qingfang, Qi Qingqi, and one notable time with Liu Qingge. The last was around a month ago, tracking down a missing merchant shipment of medical supplies with the man currently sitting across from him. Something that certainly falls under both jurisdictions of their peaks, and usually a team of regular disciples would be given such a mission, but the peak lords had chosen it for the trials instead. Good thing they had, too! With the unexpected complications that had arisen, any junior disciples would not have made it back.

“Your letter only requested a meeting at my earliest convenience,” Shang Qinghua begins, eying his martial brother inquisitively, “but not much else. Can shidi explain what it is he needs from this shixiong?”

“Shang-shixiong,” Mu Qingfang says seriously, folding his hands on the table before them. “I will be straight to the point with you. It about the mission we went on together, about a month ago? The one with the Arial Wasp Viper nest?”

Shang Qinghua can’t stop the shiver that makes its way down his spine. He should have never written those terrible creatures into existence. “Ah. Yes, I remember. What about it?”

“Well,” Mu Qingfang says. He pulls his hands apart and leans forward onto them, hovering over the table so he can better look Shang Qinghua in the face. He’s a little closer now, and Shang Qinghua can see the man’s long eyelashes.

Then, he wonders why that’s the first thing his eyes decided to stare at, and turns his attention to how neat and tidy his shidi’s hair looks pinned up the way that it is, instead of the half up-half down style Mu Qingfang typically wears it in.

Hm! Why is he so distracted by how his shidi looks? Focus, Shang Qinghua!

“—and that’s why I have to ask if you would prioritize your missions with me, above anyone else,” Mu Qingfang is saying, hands now clasped before him like some sort of maiden. Fuck, what happened? Shang Qinghua hadn’t heard a word the man had said! What should he do?

“That’s acceptable,” he says, dipping his head down in an agreeable nod, instead of asking Mu Qingfang to repeat himself.

Mu Qingfang doesn’t like to repeat himself! Everyone knows that. It’s best for Shang Qinghua if he just agrees with whatever it is the man wants and then hope it doesn’t come back to bite him in the ass later on.

Mu Qingfang blinks at him, looking a little surprised. And then the man smiles, a bright, resplendent thing that curls upwards toward his green, green eyes. He looks nice when he smiles. His teeth are straight and sparkling white, like a celebrity actor from some famous drama. Mu-shidi should definitely smile more often! Usually, his expression is totally neutral, the perfect bedside manner, and it makes him hard to connect with.

Not that Shang Qinghua wants to connect with him! Or, rather he does, but as his new martial sibling! His peak lord demands it.

The line of the doctor’s shoulders relax a little bit, which is impressive if only because Shang Qinghua hadn’t noticed the man was tense at all.

“It’s not too much trouble?” Mu Qingfang asks, that pleasant smile still curving his mouth. “I know it’s quite selfish of me, keeping you all to myself—“

What?

“—but Shang-shixiong was definitely a life-saver on that mission! I would feel much better out in the field if shixiong is there to support me.”

“What?” Shang Qinghua can’t help but ask aloud, absolutely befuddled.

Him? A life-saver? Shang Qinghua?? Sure, he’d helped out a little with the Wasp Vipers, but that’s just because he remembered their stats from his manuscripts in his past life, and had an unfair advantage! Mu Qingfang had taken care of most of the work himself! Shang Qinghua hadn’t done anything impressive at all. Is Mu-shidi feeling okay?

His shidi watches him mentally flounder for a moment, smile becoming a little smaller but there nonetheless. Just, gentler. Why do you think you need to be gentle with him, Mu-shidi? Shang Qinghua is tough! He can take it! Please do not pity your poor shixiong.

“I know Shang-shixiong thinks he is not as skilled as our martial siblings,” the doctor says, a little lower than the volume they’d been previously talking at. “This shidi could not help but notice that his shixiong is a little uncertain of himself in training and during spars. But, now that I have had the chance to see you in action, outside the pressures of the sect and the expectations of our martial family, I can safely say that Shang-shixiong has no reason to doubt himself in such a way.”

Shang Qinghua presses his lips together, fists clenched in his lap. What’s with all this sudden confidence in him? He can’t tear up in front of his very sophisticated martial brother, it would look bad. He lifts his right hand up into the air and holds the forearm horizontally in front of his eyes, ducking his head behind it. It’s a little sillier than he’d like, but it’s not as if he hasn't done much worse in public before.

He clears his throat, staring avidly at his sleeve. “Mu-shidi surely flatters this one too much.”

There’s a soft chuckle, and a warm hand wraps it’s fingers around Shang Qinghua’s wrist. Mu Qingfang gently pushes his arm down until it’s resting on the table. And then he keeps his hand there where it is, covering his wrist. Shang Qinghua’s face feels like it’s on fire. What is happening??!

“Will Qinghua-shixiong please be this one’s mission partner? For any future mission? Before any of our other martial siblings?”

Why does it sound like you’re saying wedding vows right now, Mu-shidi?! This is too serious for something like this!

“It’s very selfish of me to ask that you make me your priority in terms of partnering up for a mission,” Mu Qingfang admits, looking sheepishly down at where he still has his hand on Shang Qinghua’s wrist. His long lashes flutter as he blinks, brushing against the tops of his cheeks. “But I would be much more at ease if I knew I could count on you to be there for me when I must leave the safety of the sect.”

Shang Qinghua slides his hand out from under Mu Qingfang’s, and lets it drop into his lap. He’s certain that his entire face and neck are red. How very forward of you, Mu-shidi! Who gave you the right to be so attractive and convincing? He definitely hadn’t written you like this! Well, attractive, yes. But persuasive as hell? No! You were just suppose to be the doctor peak lord!

But if he has a standing mission partnership with Mu Qingfang, that means that the chances of ending up forced onto a mission with one of their other martial siblings, such as the likes of Liu Qingge (and after the disaster that had been, no thanks!) or worse, Shen Qingqiu, then Shang Qinghua would sign the contract himself.

Not that there’s a contract for that sort of thing. He’d know, he’s An Ding peak.

Also, that would be too much like a marriage certificate. Shang Qinghua does not want to marry Mu Qingfang.

He looks back up, sees his shidi watching him quietly, composed but for that warm smile that has hints of, what, fondness?

Fucking hell.

“This shixiong would be very pleased to be Mu-shidi’s mission partner.” He barely manages above a whisper.

Mu Qingfang’s smile widens, showing just a hint of those sparkling teeth. His bright green eyes gleam. “Please, call me Qingfang.”

Shang Qinghua squeaks.