A few days later, outside the infirmary, Wen Qing is waiting for Wei Ying and Lan Zhan, with Xue Yang asking her question after question, when they arrive.

"Would a combination of oleander and foxglove be harder to detect?"

"You're just being silly now! Either one would be instant death, so why on earth would anyone think about combining them?"

"Theoretically?"

"Theo- oh, thank God," she murmurs and rushes over to them. "My mother says we're going to leave soon, is that why we're here?" She asks Wei Ying, ignoring the muted wail of disappointment from behind them.

"Hi, Wen Qing!" Wei Ying beams at her, finding it hilarious that she's still a pint-sized medical genius trapped in her eight year old body, while he and Lan Zhan are back to normal. A few days ago, he'd even found her crying happy tears about it. "I figured we could put our heads together and help Nie-Zhongzhu out."

"Isn't he almost fully recovered though?" She asks, as Lan Zhan leads the way inside.

"Oh, I'm not talking about a new injury. But it might be better if we let him explain it to us. Come on." Wei Ying follows Lan Zhan as they enter.

The Healers have given the Nie Sect Leader his own room, and Nie MingJue is visiting with him when they knock to enter.

"...can help!" Nie MingJue is telling his father, who is frantically shaking his head.

They both startle when the immortals walk in, followed by the two children. Nie XiongMeng immediately bows with his son, and greetings are exchanged. Wei Ying distracts him with questions as Wen Qing studies him, her eyes narrow and discerning. He looks alright, perhaps a little too pale but otherwise hale and hearty.

"How are you feeling?" Wei Ying asks him, coming to stand on the other side of the bed.

"Much better. Though I have Xue-Gongzi to thank, I believe. For saving my life." He bows again, clearly not over the trauma of being attacked.

Xue Yang shrugs. "I didn't do it for you," he replies honestly, and while Wei Ying stifles a snicker, Lan Zhan throws him a look meaning, don't talk if you can't be polite.

Wen Qing smacks the back of his head and he rubs it, smiling back at her. No words are exchanged, so they must have some sort of understanding between them. She turns to Wei Ying instead. "It is as you suspected, the resentment energy is taking its toll on his body and mind. I estimate about five years, give or take a few weeks."

"What?" Nie MingJue exclaims, grabbing his father's hand, while the older man frowns, glaring between Wen Qing and Wei Ying.

"You have no right to examine me without my approval!" He shouts.

"Am I wrong, though?" Wen Qing demands. "It's only a matter of time before someone figures it out, right?"

"I will not leave the Unclean Realm when it gets to that stage," he replies defensively.

"Before you go making wild accusations or taking drastic measures, just listen to us," Wei Ying warns him, waiting for him to nod. "Good. In the interests of keeping you alive, we have come to visit you this morning."

"You don't know what you're talking about," Nie XiongMeng says, sounding miserable.

"Don't I?" Wei Ying laughs, low and dangerous. "You know, there are lots of perks to being immortal." He glances at Lan Zhan, who takes his hand and nods in agreement. "One shocking improvement is being able to detect and locate any pockets of resentment energy. You might not know this but the Cloud Recesses is warded against any negative energies, not only resentment energy but even low level monsters and yaoguai. You, sir, are reeking of it. But lucky for you, that's why we're here."

Nie XiongMeng has shrunk back into his bed warily. He is understandably upset.

"Is there a way to help him?" Nie MingJue asks bravely.

"Yes, but we need to know a bit more about how your Sect cultivates." Lan Zhan replies, easily the calmest person in the room.

"Our founder was a butcher," Nie MingJue pointedly ignores his father's protests and continues. "We cultivate not with swords but sabers, and because of the spiritual connection between the wielder and the weapon, the killing intent increases with every death. The agitation of the blade can be controlled by the owner if they're alive, but so far, all of our leaders have died from qi deviation. We have an ancestral Burial bunker, where the previous Sect Leaders' weapons have been laid to rest, but it is difficult keeping the place safe from thieves and grave robbers. How can you save my father?"

"So...you use resentment energy to cultivate? Lan Zhan looks suddenly furious, his golden eyes spitting fire.

"But in a good way!" Nie MingJue protests, looking between them.

"I told you they wouldn't understand! Why did you tell them our family secret?" Nie XiongMeng retorts angrily.

If anything, both of their remarks make Lan Zhan even more livid.

"Sweetheart," Wei Ying waits until Lan Zhan looks at him, even guiding his face towards him, just so he can shake his head at his Betrothed. "They don't know yet."

"Don't know what?" Nie MingJue asks them when no one explains anything.

"It's not important," Wen Qing glares at everyone, shutting them up. "But the reason why Celestial Immortal Wei WuXian has called me here is so that I can show you a few simple exercises that you can do to limit the rebounding resentment energy from your weapon. You should also take pointers," she glances at Nie MingJue, too.

He nods back, surprisingly open to accepting the help she's offering.

"Will you be alright showing them?" Wei Ying asks her.

"Yes, as long as they pay attention and actually do what I'm telling them," Wen Qing takes a look at Lan Zhan and tilts her head towards Wei Ying, giving him permission to leave if he wants to.

"Don't worry, Gege, I'm here," Xue Yang says unhelpfully, making his knife dance across his knuckles, not at all threateningly.

"Alright." Wei Ying pulls Lan Zhan out of there, correctly guessing the limits of his patience.

Cloud Recesses is unusually busy this morning, so the only place that's quiet enough for them to talk without the risk of being overheard is the Jingshi. Work on renovating it hasn't begun yet, so it's just the two of them. As soon as they're alone, Wei Ying wraps his arms around Lan Zhan's broad shoulders, holding him tight.

"Talk to me," he whispers, his mouth muffled against white robes.

"I do not understand why you are so calm." Lan Zhan replies, gritting his teeth.

"You want me to be upset? Why?" Wei Ying leans back to look at his face, incredulously.

"Wei Ying! They are cultivating with resentment energy! Look at their hypocrisy!" Lan Zhan fumes. "Whenever the subject of your Cultivation came up, and they called it wicked, saying you used dirty tricks, without understanding that yours was the Ghost path...all along, they were doing the very thing they accused you of, so tell me now, why AREN'T you angry?"

Wei Ying studies him for a moment, gathering his thoughts. "I suppose...I haven't given it too much attention. The main sects were always looking for someone to blame, and I attract trouble like a moth to a flame," he laughs uneasily. "I guess it's easier to let it go, you know? Back then, no one would have supported me regardless of what I said, and let's face it, if the choice came up where they had to pick between me and the whole Nie Sect, who do you think they would have sided with? A prominent Sect or the son of a servant?"

"Wei Ying-" Lan Zhan immediately looks contrite.

"No." Wei Ying puts his finger across Lan Zhan's lips. "I'm not blaming you, and you aren't allowed to do that either, not when you had no idea about my core. Let's put it all behind us. Wen Qing will help them out, that should ensure Nie MingJue getting a few more decades with his father, and I'm sure XiChen-Ge will be happy about that. Now, Lan Er-Gege..." he flutters his eyelashes seductively at his Betrothed. "Why don't we go shopping? We both need clothes, and if there's time, I have a few ideas about our wedding robes-"

Before Wei Ying can finish his sentence, and pout, suddenly the scene around them changes drastically.

They're standing in the middle of a bustling marketplace, where every other shop and even the stalls in between are selling fabrics. From silk chiffon to silk organza, heavy silk brocades to silk crepes and satins, luxurious embroideries and bolts of materials stacked as high as some of the ceilings, there is a wide variety to see and buy. One thing is certainly sure: this is not Caiyi Town.

"Lan Zhan, where are we?" Wei Ying looks around before his gorgeous, wonderful eyes flicker towards him, pinning him with a hot intensity. "And more importantly, HOW are we here?"

Lan Zhan kisses his finger and then, because he can't resist, he kisses Wei Ying's forehead and brings him into his arms.

"We are in Rongyang, Henan district. This Town is called Qingtaicunin, and we arrived here because Wei Ying wants to buy silk. This is the best place to choose from the widest variety. Does Wei Ying like anything?"

"Lan Zhan....did you just teleport us here?" Wei Ying asks him incredulously.

All he gets in return in a smug smile.

They begin to walk down the wide street, slowly so they can browse at the same time. Wei Ying links their arms together and tugs on Lan Zhan's white sleeve. "Lan Zhaaaaan! Tell me!" he whines.

"Wei Ying mentioned the perks of being an immortal. I discovered that we both can travel as we wish without wasting time, accidentally." He wants to kiss that wide, beautiful smile.

"Okay, so...lots of questions. First, can I do it, too? And what do you mean, "accidentally"? No one goes anywhere accidentally!"

Lan Zhan ponders this, picking the easiest question to answer first. "Does Wei Ying remember a few nights ago, past Hai shi? I woke up and you weren't there, and I didn't want to break curfew. But I wanted to be where you were. So I closed my mind and wished for it. When I opened my eyes, I was outside the library, and you were inside."

"Wow!" Wei Ying beams wickedly and grabs him.

Suddenly, they're in the Hanshi and Lan Qiren lets out an animalistic shriek. Wei Ying grins at him, waves, sort of bows, and grabs Lan Zhan again. Now, they're back in the centre of Qingtaicunin again.

"Just checking....right, let's go find someone to make our wedding robes."

Lan Zhan grabs him and kisses him deeply, right there in front of everyone. His Beloved is a genius, they're immortals and no one can touch them.

Life is great.

****************

It turns out, if you pay enough, people are willing to go above and beyond since money greases the wheels. They find a beautiful boutique with a plethora of fabrics, with every colour under the sun, and willing hands to make their ceremonial robes.

Wei Ying thinks the two bunnies painted on both sides of the plaque with the name is Lan Zhan's deciding factor, and it really doesn't matter because he's sat down with the Madam of the establishment now, discussing gold threads and his own designs. She's asked him to roughly sketch out an idea of what he has in mind, and Wei Ying is more than willing.

Lan Zhan had sat with them for a while, but then decided to walk around the premises. Wei Ying hears him talking to someone in a low voice, but his attention is recaptured by another question from the Madam about placement.

Hours later, Wei Ying stands up and stretches, and looks around for Lan Zhan, who emerges from the back of the store looking mighty pleased.

"Oh good," Wei Ying greets him happily, "the Madam wants our measurements."

"Mn."

Wei Ying's stomach grumbles loudly, and Lan Zhan is ready to whisk him out of there, but Wei Ying promises him he can wait.

The seamstresses arrive to begin making their clothes, and their measurements are taken. Once Wei Ying is satisfied that they can come back the following week to collect their robes, Lan Zhan brings him to the first restaurant he sees.

"Look, Lan Zhan! They've got a competition going!" Wei Ying goes closer to read the sign, pulling a willing Lan Zhan with him. "Spiciest noodles in the country? I don't believe it!"

Lan Zhan smiles indulgently at him and they go inside. They order one bowl of plain noodles for Lan Zhan, and one of the spiciest ones for Wei Ying, who also requests a jar of chilli oil on the side. They ignore all the whispers and gasps of disbelief and find a table to sit down at, while they wait for their food.

Wei Ying takes Lan Zhan's hand and begins to play with his fingers. When he gets like this, there's always something on his mind, and Lan Zhan doesn't mind waiting until he's ready to voice his thoughts out loud. He's content to watch the lovely silver eyes across from him sparkle with delight as Wei Ying concentrates on distracting himself.

Their food arrives and other patrons inch closer, surreptitiously watching Wei Ying as he digs into his food. Lan Zhan loves this, getting to eat with his beloved. It's such a small thing, but ever since Wei Ying had offered to buy him a meal with A-Yuan in Yiling, this has remained one of his most coveted fantasies. It is the height of domestic bliss.

Wei Ying wrinkles his nose after the first bite and for a second, Lan Zhan wonders if this bowl of noodles has actually bested-

Nevermind...he watches Wei Ying upend half the jar of chilli oil onto his food and guzzle it down. Good, he must be hungry. Lan Zhan takes his time, chewing slowly. They've got nowhere to be in a hurry, and here, he gets to have Wei Ying all to himself. That's why Wei Ying finishes first, and he's just about to say something really important, when cheers break out around them, startling them both.

"Congratulations, Gongzi! You are the first ever person to finish a bowl of our spiciest noodles, and here is your prize!" The restaurant owner brings over two sticks of tanghulu and places it on Wei Ying's side.

The crowd disperses, some of them saying they've never seen anything like that before.

When they're alone again, Wei Ying waits until Lan Zhan finishes his meal and then holds the first stick against his lips, smiling brightly. Lan Zhan is lost in his gaze, and his mouth opens automatically, even though he was going to protest and make Wei Ying try the treat first.

"Lan Zhan..." Wei Ying watches the way Lan Zhan's pink tongue comes out to swipe over his red lips to remove the excess sugar. He has to jog his brain into remembering what he wants to ask.

"Mn?"

"What do you think about our wedding? Are you happy?"

Lan Zhan takes the stick of tanghulu and presses it against Wei Ying's willing mouth, trying not to think about the inadvertent kiss. Wei Ying's innocent smile proves that he's not a moment away from ripping robes off like Lan Zhan is. He forces himself to calm down.

"If possible, I would prefer a quiet, small wedding. Just our families. Not the circus Shufu has planned."

"Okay," Wei Ying agrees, with no small amount of relief. "We can do that. When we go back, let's get our parents on our side first, and then talk to him. Worst case scenario, we can get married and then piss off. I mean, what's he gonna do?"

Lan Zhan huffs out a laugh and finds Wei Ying staring at his lips.

Oh...he may have made a mistake about Wei Ying's robes and thoughts about taking off certain-

In a blink, they're back in the Jingshi and an extremely eager Wei Ying is climbing him like a tree, his mouth everywhere, and making Lan Zhan make the most obscene noises in return.

"Wei Ying? Did we pay for our food?"