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Lan Xichen was out strolling around the Cloud Recesses as Lan Wangji and his husband returned from their trip to Yunmeng. Wei Ying was dramatically slumped over as his beloved Lan Zhan carried him maiden-style. This wasn’t unusual for the two, nor was the insistent chattering Wei Wuxian was doing.
“You’re wrong! How dare you accuse me of infecting you when you’re the one who had a fever first…” Wei Wuxian rambled into the nothingness. But as much as Lan Xichen’s brother-in-law liked to spew bullshit he usually did so whilst making at least some semblance of sense.
“You don’t think I heard about it from Jin Ling? That boy is working his ass off to take care of you.” Flinging his arms around as he argued with himself, Wei Ying struck his husband’s shoulder. An action which was not only weak due to his lack of strength but it was also completely ignored by Lan Wangji.
“Pah, who cares that you took care of him first?” Sounded like Wei Ying was repeating an argument he had had with his brother. Walking closer to inquire of their visit Lan Huan approached, but one look from his brother stopped him dead in his tracks.
“It’s highly contagious” was all he said before retreating into Jingshi to avoid anyone else falling victim to the illness his husband had caught. After instructing one of their disciples to provide Lan Wangji’s home with food and water for the next couple of weeks to allow the two cultivators to quarantine Lan Xichen made off to Yunmeng, Lotus Pier. If this illness was as contagious as they said, then Jin Ling would likely be down for the count right about now and the uncle-nephew pair was in need of care.
Lotus Pier looked desolate in comparison to what it usually was like, to protect his disciples sect leader Jiang had sent most of them home to make sure his illness didn’t spread further than it had to. The familiar halls were empty and carried a deafening silence as Lan Huan walked through them. Outside of Jiang Cheng’s bedroom they had set up a temporary couch on which Lan Xichen found an exhausted pile of yellow fabric.
“Zewu-jun” the tired Jin rasped. Attempting to stand up he was unsteady on his feet and stumbled about before once more falling down on the couch he’d been resting on. If he wasn’t sick already he was on the cusp of either becoming sick or having a burnout. Either way his appearance made it clear that he needed to continue to rest. His clothes were unkempt and his face had turned a bleak and sickly white. A stark contrast to the usually animated and dignified sect heir.
“Don’t worry young master Jin, I’ll go take care of your uncle. You should rest.” Lan Xichen said, helping the Jin to lay down once more. When he attempted to leave the older cultivator was stopped by two big expecting eyes staring up at him. It was the same childish eyes Lan Sizhui would give him back when he was younger or sick. Leaning over he tucked in the young cultivator and hummed him to sleep. It didn’t take long for the exhaustion to take over and the Jin was soon deep asleep. Light snoring could be heard as Lan Huan went to leave, there was still one more patient to care for.
Being light on his feet so as to not wake Jin Ling, Lan Xichen snuck into sect leader Jiang’s bedroom and gently closed the door behind him. Nervousness filled his stomach as he took a couple of steps inside. It wasn’t like Lan Huan hadn’t been in here before, he just hadn’t been in here alone. Not that he was alone now either. In the center of the room laying on a luxurious bed was sect leader Jiang.
Unlike his own sleeping position, young master Jin had taken great care to make sure his uncle was laying down properly. There wasn’t a crinkle in sight on the soft duvet that covered the man. He was spotless, the image of handsome perfection, as though he was being prepared to become part of an exhibit rather than recovering from being sick.
Not that he needed perfection. Even when he was messy his good looks still shone brightly. In battle, with his hair flowing with his swift movements. His face and clothes splattered with the blood of his enemies as his glare pierced his opponents as fiercely as his blade, even then Jiang Wanyin was very handsome.
Sitting down next to the sleeping man, Lan Xichen placed a hand upon Jiang Wanyin’s forehead and one of his own. To his relief it seemed like the younger cultivator was getting better, there was barely any difference in their temperatures.
His favorite version of sect leader Jiang was definitely the one he was at the present moment. Not the version sleeping in front of him, but whatever type he was in the present. It didn’t matter what Jiang Wanyin was like, Lan Huan liked him just as much regardless of what he was like.
Or at least that’s what the Lan thought before he remembered that there was the drunk Jiang Wanyin who, when passed a certain point, became very touchy feely. Wrapping his arms around the people closest to him as he complimented everyone and anyone he came across. ”Your sword skills are magnificent”, “I love your muscles, have you been working out?”, “If you weren’t a man I’d kiss you right now.” Having had the last one directed at himself Lan Huan hadn’t been sure what to do. He simply sat there staring into the oh so innocent eyes of the Jiang who was practically sitting in his lap at this point.
That’s when his brother-in-law had come to his rescue, despite being equally as inebriated he called out his brother for being too clingy. Which of course started an argument between the two due to the Wei being a massive hypocrite. As if playing some sort of game, he had over the course of the evening gotten closer and closer to his husband and at this point there was not a single part of his body that wasn’t in contact with Lan Wangji.
“Well Lan Xichen doesn’t mind either, right?” he would smile sweetly to try and get out of it. No doubt a leant skill he had gotten from Wei Ying. But it was also something his sober self would be too ashamed to ever try out, if he ever found out the way he behaved that night he would swear to never touch another drop of booze in his life.
“Mn” Lan Huan didn’t mind, in fact he wanted him even closer. Much closer. “Jiang Cheng, I love you” Lan Xichen whispered. But not to the drunk Jiang Wanyin, no the one who had heard his words was the one in the present moment.
“Can’t even tell the difference between me and your husband and yet you say that I’m the sick one!? Hah!” Jiang Wanyin stared off into the nothingness as he continued the argument he’d had with his brother hours ago. Then a smirk spread across his face “Or perhaps you’ve finally come to your senses and will ditch the Lan to return to my side. Well I’m not having it, did you expect me to welcome you back with open arms the moment you changed your mind? Tsk” Jiang Cheng rolled his eyes, he was still pissed and not about to simply forgive and forget whatever disagreement they had had this time.
“Good morning sect leader Jiang, how are you feeling right now?” That was not something his brother would say. The Jiang turned his head to look at the man sitting in the chair beside his bed.
“Lan Wangji?” Jiang Wanyin squinted at the white dressed cultivator. It was clearly a Lan. Had his brother finally caught some sense and left him alone? But then why would that annoying riffraff still remain in his home? “Out! your husband’s created enough trouble as it is, are you going to try and infect me even more?” In a small mumbling voice, he added “Haven’t you two done enough? It already hurts, don’t you dare make it worse…”
“You’re in pain!?” Lan Xichen reached out for the Jiang’s hand and allowed his spiritual energy to flow into sect leader Jiang to reduce any pain he might be experiencing. But the instant Jiang Cheng felt the light energy flowing into his body he retracted his hand as though he had been burned.
“Get the fuck away from me! I already told you, I don’t want it.” Jiang Wanyin slapped away his hand as he glared at him. Lan Xichen wasn’t used to such hostility being directed towards him. Not even coming from sect leader Jiang. “If you were going to be like this you could’ve at least have the decency to infect sect leader Lan as well”
“...” At this point Lan Xichen got upset, he had no obligations to come help him out and now Jiang Wanyin wished for him to get ill as well? “Who do you think would come and take care of you if they infected me as well? You sent everyone else away and Jin Rulan is already on the verge of collapsing, and now you want me sick too?” Jiang Wanyin finally realized which Lan was sitting before him.
“Yes, I want you sick. I want you so sick you can’t stand the thought of us being apart. For every breath you breathe to be one you make for me and only me. I want you to crave me even just a fraction of how much I crave you. It’s so unfair, why am I the only one infected by that dumbass’ illness!? I don’t want to be a fucking cutsleeve, I should be busy meeting women, go on dates, and plan my future marriage. Not sitting around getting butterflies every time I go on a work trip and agonizing over a man that I can’t fucking have.” Jiang Cheng passionately spoke. In his feverish state he had no filters, nothing stopping him from just pouring his heart out.
Each word the Jiang spoke made Lan Huan feel hotter, his stomach being set ablaze. If being a cutsleeve, like what Jiang Wanyin had said, indeed was an illness then he was already thoroughly infected. As he got confirmation that his feelings were reciprocated his mind grew foggy and all he could think of was the attractive Jiang Cheng laying in front of him.
“What if you could?” he asked, because all Jiang Wanyin had to do was ask. Lan Huan would gladly give himself up to the feverish cultivator any day.
“??” sect leader Jiang was not in a state which would allow him to understand anything not explicitly stated to him. So that was exactly what Lan Huan chose to do.
“Jiang Cheng, will you marry me?”
“No.” Lan Xichen’s heart dropped at the Jiang’s determined and definite response. Perhaps his previous speech didn’t mean as much as Lan Huan thought. Or worse, since he was a man he couldn’t become sect leader Jiang’s official partner. It didn’t matter that they felt the same way, they still weren’t able to be together.
“You can’t just ask a sick person something like that! How am I supposed to reminisce to our grandchildren about the way you proposed if I can’t even remember it.” The Jiang said with a pout. But his upset mood didn’t last long. Slowly his expression softened and his eyelids grew heavy before they eventually closed. His head fell onto the Lan’s strong shoulder as he began to softly snore. Jiang Cheng had tuckered himself out with his grand speech and had dozed off, too tired to stay awake any longer.
“Don’t worry” Lan Xichen caressed the Jiang’s hair as he smiled happily to himself. His heart, which had quickly made a 180, felt full as a result of finding out that the man he loves was willing to marry him. “I’ll tell them that you loved and cared for them greatly, far before they were even born” And with that he kissed the younger cultivator's head as he began planning his second proposal. The one his descendants, for generations to come, would be made to listen to over and over until they were unable to stand hearing about it any longer.