Chapter 66

Chapter 66: Indecision Part 14

They descended the mountain path and took a hidden trail to leave Cloud Recesses, gradually distancing themselves from the areas frequently patrolled by the disciples of the Gusu Lan Family. As they traveled farther and farther, Wei Wuxian suddenly exclaimed, "Oh no, my stomach's acting up!"

Lan Wangji immediately stopped and said, "Rest and change the bandages."

Wei Wuxian said, "No need. I'll be fine once I'm seated."

Lan Wangji said, "Sit."

Wei Wuxian grimaced and said, "But the movement to get on the donkey might pull my wound."

His wound had long since healed, making it clear he was just being cheeky. Lan Wangji stopped, turned around, looked at him, and then suddenly reached out, avoiding the injured area, and gently lifted him by the waist, placing him on Little Apple's back.

Wei Wuxian rode the donkey, while Lan Wangji walked beside him. Wei Wuxian sat on Little Apple's back, his eyes curved in a smile. Lan Wangji said, "What's got you grinning like that?"

Wei Wuxian said, "Nothing."

He felt a bit smug, like he'd just gotten away with a little prank.

Although he couldn't remember many things from his childhood, one scene was always vaguely imprinted in his mind.

A small path, a small flower donkey, and three people. The man in black gently lifted the woman in white and set her on the donkey's back, then lifted a small child high and placed him on his shoulder.

He was that small child, too short to reach the adults' legs. Perched on the man’s shoulders, he felt incredibly tall and important, grabbing the man's hair, rubbing his face, kicking his legs non-stop, and yelling. The woman in white sat unsteadily on the donkey, looking at them and seemingly smiling. The man was always silent, not much of a talker, but he supported the child, making sure he sat higher and more securely, while leading the flower donkey with the reins. The three of them slowly moved forward on the small path.

It was one of his few memories.

That was his father and mother.

Wei Wuxian said, "Lan Wangji, how about you hold the reins for a bit?"

Lan Wangji said, "Why?"

Little Apple was smart enough to follow behind without being led. Wei Wuxian said, "Just do me the favor, hold them for a bit."

Though still puzzled by Wei Wuxian’s bright grin, Lan Wangji obliged and took Little Apple's reins into his hand.

Wei Wuxian mused aloud, "Hmm. If only we had a little one too."

Lan Wangji said, "What?"

Wei Wuxian said with a sly grin, "Nothing. Lan Wangji, you're really a good man."

Heading to Yiling was risky business, but Wei Wuxian felt no tension. Riding a small flower donkey, with Lan Wangji leading the way by holding the reins, he felt as if he were floating on clouds. Even if a group of cultivators ambushed them, it wouldn’t faze him much; it would just spoil the scenery and ruin the mood. He even had the leisure to admire the wild fields under the moonlight and played a melody on the bamboo flute from his waist. Naturally, he played a tune.

The flute music was clear and resonant, causing Lan Wangji's steps to falter slightly. Wei Wuxian's heart suddenly lit up.

He said, "Lan Wangji! Hey, what was the name of that song you sang to me in the Tortoise of Slaughter cave at Moxi Mountain?"

Lan Wangji looked at him and said, "Why do you suddenly remember to ask this now?"

Wei Wuxian said, "Just tell me the name. I think I've figured out how you recognized me."

That night at Dafan Mountain, the tune he had unconsciously played was the same melody that Lan Wangji had softly sung to him as he lay feverish in the Tortoise of Slaughter cave at Moxi Mountain.

Lan Wangji remained silent, so Wei Wuxian urged, "Speak, what song? Who composed it?"

Lan Wangji said, "I did."

Wei Wuxian said, "You composed it?!?"

Lan Wangji said, "Hmm."

Wei Wuxian had originally assumed that the tune was some sort of secret, never-before-shared melody of the Gusu Lan Family. To his surprise, it wasn't, leaving him both shocked and delighted. The shock was self-explanatory, but the delight was harder to put into words. He asked tentatively, "You really recognized me because of this?—Which means that this tune, you've never let anyone else hear it?"

Lan Wangji said, "Never."

In his excitement, Wei Wuxian suddenly kicked Little Apple. The donkey let out an angry bray, seemingly wanting to throw him off, but Lan Wangji quickly tightened the reins just in time. Wei Wuxian hugged Little Apple's neck and said, "It's okay, it's okay, he just has this temper; he'll only buck a little." He then continued, "Never mind that. Let's keep talking. So, what's the name of the tune?"

Lan Wangji said, "What do you think?"

Wei Wuxian said, "What do you mean, what do I think? Does it have a name or not?" He thought to himself, *Could Lan Zhan's naming style be the same as Jiang Cheng's? No way!* He then said, "Are you asking for my opinion? How about we call it…"

After carefully proposing over eighty different names, all of which were rejected by Lan Wangji, Wei Wuxian's enthusiasm finally began to wane.

To avoid running into cultivators searching for them on the main roads, the two stuck to secluded country paths. After a day of travel, Wei Wuxian felt slightly tired and thirsty. Just then, he spotted a farmhouse by the roadside. Lan Wangji reined in Little Apple.

No one answered the door when they knocked. When Wei Wuxian pushed it again, the door creaked open by itself. In the center of the yard stood a handmade wooden table, with an unfinished bowl of beans on it. Next to the earthen wall was a tall stack of hay with a rake stuck in it. Chicks were pecking around, chirping as they ran to and fro.

Wei Wuxian spotted a few melons stacked in the corner of the yard. He walked over, picked one up, and said with a serious expression, "The owner's not here. Hanguang Jun, let’s take what we need."

Lan Wangji was about to place some silver on the table when footsteps approached from outside the wall. Two people—one in front of the other—likely the owners of the house returning. Wei Wuxian, for some reason, immediately pushed Lan Wangji into the haystack as soon as he heard the footsteps.

Fortunately, Lan Wangji's usual calm and steady demeanor kept him from making a sound. However, he clearly didn't understand why they were hiding. Wei Wuxian thought, *Right, why are we hiding? These villagers wouldn't recognize us. We could just say we're here to buy food. Maybe it's because we've done too many shady things. It's become a habit.*

Yet, suddenly pushing Lan Wangji onto the soft haystack filled Wei Wuxian with a strange sense of excitement. He decided not to get up and instead pretended that this was absolutely necessary. He solemnly raised his index finger to signal Lan Wangji to stay quiet, then shamelessly lay on top of him, feeling an inexplicable sense of glee.

In the yard, the sound of a wooden stool being moved could be heard. The two hosts, likely farmers, seemed to have sat down at the small wooden table. A woman's voice said, "Lan Er Gege, let me hold him."

Hearing the term "Lan Er Gege," Lan Wangji was slightly startled.

Then, a man's voice said, "You just peel the beans." Following this, the faint murmurs of a child who was deeply asleep could be heard.

It seemed this was a young couple. The wife was preparing dinner, while the husband held their sleeping child.

Wei Wuxian, with a playful smile, winked at Lan Wangji and whispered, "What a coincidence. One of the owners of this farmhouse also calls someone 'Lan Er Gege.'"

His tone carried a playful edge. Lan Wangji gave him a deep, silent look before turning his head away. Wei Wuxian felt a thrill of delight and whispered into Lan Wangji's ear, "Blue Second Brother."

Lan Wangji's breath caught for a moment, his gaze carrying a hint of warning.

In the yard, the wife, cracking beans in her hands, said, "Lan Er Gege, you really need to discipline Ah Bao properly."

The husband replied, "He's exhausted from playing today. He won't wake up so easily."

The wife continued, "Lan Er Gege, you really need to discipline Ah Bao properly. He's only four, and he's already like this. When he grows up, it'll be even worse. The other kids have already been upset and said they don't want to play with him anymore."

The husband said, "But they still seek him out every time. They say they don't want to play, but clearly, they want to."

Wei Wuxian burst out laughing and asked, "Blue Second Brother, what do you think about that? Do you agree?"

Lan Wangji said, "Stop talking."

At their volume, an ordinary person wouldn’t have heard them. While the couple chatted casually in the yard, Wei Wuxian, still hidden with Lan Wangji, whispered "Blue Second Brother" seven or eight times in a soft, teasing manner. Seemingly unable to take it anymore, Lan Wangji swiftly flipped their positions.

His movements were quick and steady, leaving the haystack undisturbed, but pinning Wei Wuxian beneath him.

Lan Wangji whispered, "If you call me again, I’ll make you stop talking."

Wei Wuxian reached out toward his face, but Lan Wangji immediately caught his wrist. Wei Wuxian said seriously, "Hanguang Jun, there's a piece of straw stuck to your forehead ribbon."

Hearing this, Lan Wangji slowly let go of his wrist. Wei Wuxian plucked the tiny straw and held it up triumphantly, saying, "See? I wasn’t lying."

But before Wei Wuxian could fully enjoy his moment of triumph, the young wife chimed in again, "But even so, we can’t just let Ah Bao bully others."

Her husband casually remarked, "Just let him be. Boys often tease those they like, hoping to get noticed."

Hearing this, Wei Wuxian’s smile faded.

At that moment, it seemed the young child had woken up, babbling in a soft, childish voice. The couple quickly cooed to calm him down. After coaxing the child back to sleep, the young wife said, "Er Gege, I was telling you just now that you need to properly discipline Ah Bao. It’s not just about that; things have been pretty unsettling lately. You need to keep him from playing outside and make sure he comes home early every day."

The husband said, "I know. Is it because of the recent incidents where the old graves near the village were dug up?"

The wife said, "I heard that not only near our village, but many ancestral graves in the city have also been disturbed. It’s too eerie. It’s better for Ah Bao to stay home and not go out so much."

The husband said, "Yes. If we run into the Yiling Patriarch, it would be disastrous."

Wei Wuxian: "..."

The young wife softly said, "I’ve heard stories about the Yiling Patriarch ever since I was a kid. I thought the phrase 'If you're not obedient, the Yiling Patriarch will come back to get you and feed you to the ghosts' was just something adults said to scare children. Who knew he was actually real and had come back?"

The husband said, "Yes. The moment I heard about the grave digging, I immediately thought of him. It’s been widely spread in the city."

As for his association with the "grave digging," Wei Wuxian could only feel helpless. To be honest, he had indeed done quite a few things like this in the past. The most famous incident was during the Sunshot Campaign when he overturned the burial grounds of the Wen family of Qishan, digging three feet deep and turning all the corpses into corpse puppets. Every Wen family cultivator he killed was also turned into a puppet, forced to slaughter their own friends and family before their death. During the Sunshot Campaign, people spoke highly of these actions, praising them as heroic deeds. But as time went by after the Sunshot Campaign, mentioning these acts now fills people with dread and disgust. Not only others, but Wei Wuxian himself, upon reflection, felt he had gone too far. Considering his identity was revealed just a few days ago, it’s no surprise people instantly linked any large-scale grave digging to the Yiling Patriarch.